System and method for establishing a communication channel over a heterogeneous network between a source node and a destination node

ABSTRACT

A system and method for establishing a communication channel between a source node and a destination node via a heterogeneous communication network comprising at least one intermediate node is disclosed. A request for a communication channel having specified characteristics is issued by the source node to the most immediately adjacent of a possible plurality of intermediate nodes. Each intermediate node determines whether or not it has the available communication resources to support the request. If so, sufficient communication resources are reserved in order to support the request and the request is forwarded to the next intermediate node. The determination by each intermediate node is continued until the destination is reached. After determination by the intermediate node as to whether or not the communication channel can be supported, an indication reflecting the determination is returned to the source node via the intermediate nodes. If a positive indication is received the communication channel is established.

This application is related to U.S. application Ser. Nos. 256,211, and 256,209, by Aldred et al both filed Jun. 27, 1994, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,539,886.

The present invention relates to a system and method for establishing a communication channel over a heterogeneous network between a source node and a destination node.

Personal computers are now widespread throughout the business community and many are able to intercommunicate, either through fixed connections e.g. local area networks, or through dynamically established links e.g. ISDN or async lines over the public switched telephone network. Increasingly, these connected personal computers can be used to enhance collaborative working between remote individuals; a typical example being the use of desk top conferencing software. Successful collaborative work generally requires more than a simple data link between the participants; voice capabilities are normally essential and video links are frequently required. Thus remote collaborative working can often be regarded as an extension to the traditional telephone call--it being enhanced with the data and programs available at the desktop via the personal computer--and, on occasions, enriched with video services.

A broad spectrum of collaborative applications can be envisaged, ranging from utilities taking advantage of the data and applications on a workstation, e.g. sharing of screen windows and files, through to new collaborative applications designed to meet the needs of specific classes of remote user e.g. just-in-time education, remote presentations, executive broadcasts or help desk. The common requirements behind these examples are:

the support of a wide variety of personal computer platforms--both hardware and software,

operation over the existing communication networks,

group communications and multi-media data services.

Conventionally, collaborative working systems are realised using homogeneous communication networks, such as a local area network, in which the physical links between the nodes have the same characteristics and accordingly any communications channels established between nodes can all support a required quality of service for that channel. However, the above cannot be extended to an environment comprising a heterogeneous network in which the links between nodes have different characteristics.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a method for establishing a communication channel over a heterogeneous network between a source node and a destination node via a route comprising at least one intermediate node, each of said nodes having a support system including a network control subsystem for controlling physical routing of data between nodes and a respective record of available communication resources to adjacent nodes in said route, said method comprising the steps of

receiving, at said support system of said source node, a request, from a first application executing at said source node, to establish a communication channel having specified characteristics between said first application and a second application at said destination node,

transmitting said request from said source node to said at least one intermediate node;

for each intermediate node,

receiving at said intermediate node said request from the preceding node,

determining, at said intermediate node from said respective record of available communication resources, whether or not the request can be supported using the available communication resources between said intermediate node and an adjacent node in said route, and

if said request can be supported by said intermediate node, transmitting said request from said intermediate node to the next node in said route;

receiving at said destination node said request from said at least one intermediate node,

determining, at said destination node, whether or not to accept the request, and if so, transmitting an indication thereof to said source node; and

establishing said communication channel between said first and second applications in response to said indication.

The provision of communication channels between nodes which are connected to or via a heterogeneous network allows greater flexibility to be exercised when either initially designing a network or looking to integrate new products or workstations into such an existing network.

Further, the source and intermediate nodes only need to be concerned with the links to immediately adjacent nodes when determining whether or not a requested quality or service or communication channel can be supported. The source node does not have to possess knowledge of all of the physical links which will ultimately support the communication channel to the destination node nor perform all of the calculations necessary to determine whether or not a particular combination of physical links can support a required quality of service.

Accordingly, there is provided a method further comprising the step of modifying said request before said intermediate node transmits it to said destination node.

At an intermediate node the selection of an appropriate link to an adjacent node in the route is conducted by the intermediate node and the intermediate node performs the necessary calculations to ensure that the required quality of service requested by the source node can be supported thereby alleviating the source node of such calculations or selections.

An intermediate node, in prior art systems, while having sufficient communication resources to support the communication channel, may not currently having those resources available and accordingly the request for the communication channel is refused.

Suitably, there is provided a method further comprising, at each node, the steps of

if said request cannot be supported using the available intermediate node communication resources, determining whether or not a further application executing at said node will relinquish the node communication resources allocated thereto, and

using any relinquished node communication resources to support said request.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 portrays the interaction of two programmable workstations.

FIG. 2 depicts the overall structure of the support system in relation to other software components of the workstation with which it interfaces.

FIG. 3 depicts a number of applications sharing information.

FIG. 4 illustrates the two sharing sets created by the application sharing of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of the communications channels.

FIG. 6 depicts a shared drawing board demonstrating serialization.

FIG. 7 depicts data synchronization using two channels.

FIG. 8 demonstrates the overall structure of a standard sending command port.

FIG. 9 demonstrates yet another representation of a sending command port utilized between a system and an application.

FIG. 9a depicts a call manager negotiating with an application to determine what resources are available.

FIG. 9b depicts a more complex scheme for resource allocation required when a collection of applications need to share channel resources between two nodes.

FIG. 9c depicts the scenario when a resource manager needs to negotiate with applications to determine what resources are available.

FIG. 9d depicts the variation in latency and jitter based on the number of frames arriving and the arrival times.

FIG. 9e shows the linkage between the system support link selector, the application channel creation and the link data.

FIG. 9f depicts the channel skew with respect to the number of arriving packets and the arrival times.

FIG. 9g demonstrates the interrelationship between channels, links and routes.

FIG. 9h is a flow chart of the logic when an intermediate node receives a request for support.

FIG. 9i depicts a part of a heterogeneous network containing a source node, multiple intermediate nodes, and a destination node.

FIG. 10 schematically represents the interaction between the application program, the call manager and the application manager in the present invention.

FIG. 11 illustrates an application window of an unaware ampliation to be displayed at a remote node.

FIG. 12 depicts the flows between two applications in the present invention.

FIG. 13 demonstrates the structure of the replaceable application programs or utilities of the present invention.

FIG. 14 depicts the flow of information between the call manager's event handler and the two communicating applications.

FIG. 15 is a graphical representation of the screen interface used in the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 depicts four nodes involved in two calls using the present invention.

FIG. 17 depicts the interaction between the active processes of the present invention.

An embodiment will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the figures of the accompanying drawings.

In FIG. 1 are shown two programmable workstations 10 and 12 connected by link 11 in a network, such as a LAN or WAN. The principal components of the workstations are conventionally described as layers, starting with the hardware 13. The hardware which is not illustrated in detail, consists of a processor unit with main memory, secondary storage such as a disk file, a display unit and input/output devices such as keyboard and mouse. Device support software 14 enables the hardware devices to function within a known operating system 15, such as IBM's Operating System/2 (OS/2).

Also part of a conventional workstation, when used in a network, is networking software 16 for supporting connection to the network 11 and communication over the network between workstations. Typical networking software 16 could be the Netbios program product from IBM. Up to this point all that has been described is a conventional networking workstation capable of executing application programs 18.

Each work station includes collaborative application support system software 17 which facilitates the development of application programs for creating a distributed collaborative working environment. In this environment, end-users of the workstation may communicate with users of other workstations in the network over multi-media channels and may work collaboratively on shared data and tasks.

The overall structure of support system 17 in relation to other software components of the workstation with which it interfaces directly is shown in FIG. 2. Further details of the internal structure of the support system are shown in FIG. 10. Broadly speaking, the main functional components of system 17 lie between two interfaces 20 and 21, illustrated by dashed lines.

An application programming interface 20 allows applications 18 to request support services. A device driver interface 21 allows the system to support an extensible range of software and hardware communications subsystems through device drivers such as token ring driver 25, ISDN driver 26, RS232 driver 27 and other device drivers 28. Link support modules 228, 229 interface with the device drivers. These are replaceable, (FIG. 10 shows only a possible selection) depending on the hardware options available at the workstation, and serve to isolate the support system from needing to know precisely which hardware is present. Through an implicit resources interface, (not illustrated) details of the communications network, such as node addresses and directory data may be requested by both the support system, the applications and the device drivers from resource files 29.

The API 20 allows applications 18 to initiate peer applications and share resources, on a variety of hardware and software platforms, located on nodes across a diverse and complex communications networks. It allows them to define multiple dedicated logical data channels between shared applications, suitable to a broad range of multi-media traffic, independently of the structure of the underlying physical network. It allows them to serialise, synchronise, merge or copy the data streaming between shared applications. It also allows them to support a range of attached devices and to allow the interception and redirection of the device data.

The support system includes other components to assist application development such as an extensible set of logical devices 30, interfacing to external applications and devices. Also provided is a set of end-user utilities, written to the API (not illustrated), which can also invoked from applications through a command interface.

Network, nodes and applications

At the highest level, the programming model presented by the API consists of a communicating set of nodes. A node is the addressable entity representing a user, and comprises an instance of the support system software, and a set of resources such as application programs, data etc. Usually a node is typically a dedicated programmable workstation 10, capable of communicating with its peers; in a multi-user system a node is associated with each user.

Nodes are either supported nodes or non-supported nodes; a supported node is one where the support system software 17 is being executed. A collection of inter-communicating supported nodes is called a supported network.

Nodes are identified by name; ideally all node names should be unique but duplicates can be tolerated as long as their associated nodes are never required to inter-communicate. The choice of node naming scheme is not directly relevant to the present invention, although a hierarchical system such as that defined by the Internet protocol has many benefits. It is fundamental to the architecture that a node can dynamically join or leave the network.

Nodes can contain logical devices 30. A logical device is a software extension to the support system that allows an application to manipulate or manage software or equipment, in a manner consistent with other entities in the architecture. There is an extensive range of possible logical devices including: presentation windows, printers, disk drives, modems, and application programs.

Multiple applications can be executed at a node, subject to the constraints imposed there by the operating and windowing system. Applications are either aware or unaware; an aware application uses the services of the API; an unaware application does not. Both aware and unaware applications will generally be executing simultaneously at a node.

When the support system is fully active at a node, one particular aware application must be running at that node. This application plays a unique role at that node and is known as call manager 32. Many call managers may be available for execution at a particular node but only one can execute at a time. The distinguishing feature of a call manager is that it responds to certain events generated by the support system; for example, it resolves any requests that are not directed specifically at an instance of an application, and optionally it may also handle resource management for the node. Call manager responsibility can be transferred from one call manager to another; also the role can be combined with user application function if that is appropriate.

The support software 17 may request that the resources of one node are made available for communication between two other nodes; this is termed passive operation and permission is controlled by the call manager at the passive node. As an example, consider two nodes A and B on a LAN, with a third node C connected to B by an asynchronous communications link. If applications at A and C wish to communicate, the traffic will need to be routed via B. The consent of the call manager at B is required for this use of its node.

Aware applications can share data and resources with other aware applications at the same or different nodes. A collection of applications sharing is called a sharing set. An aware application initiates a share request, naming an application sharing set, a target application and a destination node. This request is first passed by the support software to the call manager at the sending node, which will typically transfer it to the call manager at the destination node. Usually this second call manager will launch the requested application and the source application will be informed. The participation of the call managers in this process allows both local control of the sharing process and other actions to be initiated if necessary. The call managers play a vital role in resolving the names used by applications to identify other nodes and applications. The sharing mechanism can be cascaded; for example, if two applications are already sharing, one of them can initiate a share with a third application naming the same sharing set, with the result that all three applications are then sharing with each other.

Applications may also make local share requests on behalf of other applications thereby allowing membership control of the sharing set to be delegated. Facilities exist for either the issuer, or the target of the share request, to name the application sharing set. These names are not required to be unique: thus multiple sharing sets with the same name can exist.

Individual applications can cease sharing at any time, withdrawing from a sharing set; the other applications in the set are informed of the withdrawal. FIG. 3 shows a number of applications A-E sharing. This results in two sharing sets, irrespective of the order in which the shares were requested, as illustrated in FIG. 4.

Communications, channels and ports

As illustrated in the schematic example of FIG. 5, applications in a sharing set such as 40, 41 and 42 can establish data communication links with each other known as channels. Channels such as 43 and 44 are logically dedicated and uni-directional pipes, with application specified transmission characteristics. A channel is always defined by the sending application and it goes from a sending application to a receiving application. The ends of channels are known as ports; thus all channels have one sending port and one receiving port. A sending port such as 45 sends data packets down the channel; a receiving port such as 46 receives data packets from the channel in the order in which they were sent. There may be no direct mapping between the logical channel structure seen by the aware applications and the physical communication network in existence between the nodes.

An application may establish multiple channels to another application as a convenient way to separate data traffic of different types. The system network manager 31, FIG. 2 may map some or all of the logical channels on to a single physical link such as link 11, FIG. 1 but this will be invisible to the application.

Channels have a number of quality of service characteristics, initially negotiated with the support system 17 during the creation process, which allow data transmission characteristics to be tailored to the requirements of the expected traffic. These characteristics include encryption, compression hints. Encryption allows the data to be encrypted during transmission along the channel; compression hints allow the system the option of compressing the data over narrow bandwidth links.

Quality of service parameters are defined according to signal type, which distinguishes analog from digital data. They need not be specified explicitly, but can be notified to the support system in terms of data classes. This mechanism allows video-channels, voice channels and other data channels to be sensibly established. Channel characteristics can be re-negotiated after channel creation. The data transmission characteristics are implemented in the real network by means of the data transformation manager 32, FIG. 2 in response to the characteristics specified in the channel creation calls over the API.

Four types of channel are supported: standard, merged, synchronous and serialised. Standard channels are the default case; the other types are used in conjunction with collections of channels, known as channel sets. Through a merged channel set data packets are combined from multiple channels and delivered to each receiving application through a single port. There is no guarantee that each application receives all the data packets in the same sequence, only that each application receives all the packets. Through a serialising channel set data packets are combined from different channels, serialised, and delivered to each application such that each receiving port receives the same sequence of data. Through a synchronising channel set data is synchronised, so that the data packets on separate channels are tied together in time (for example voice with video), but delivered through the individual ports belonging to the channels.

An example of data serialisation is illustrated by a shared drawing board application illustrated in FIG. 6. Two identical applications, A and B (50 and 52), allow their users to draw on a single shared surface. In order that the users at A and B see identical results, all the drawing orders at A must be sent to B via ports 53 and 54, and vice versa via ports 55 and 56, in such a way that the sequence processed at A and B is identical. This is accomplished by each transmitting their own data both to each other and to themselves, over two channels 57 and 58 which are members of a common serialising channel set 59.

With reference to FIG. 4, data synchronisation is illustrated by an application A (60), that needs to send lip-synchronised video and voice to application B (61). Two channels 62 and 63 are used for the transmission, each being a member of the same synchronising channel set 64.

Channels can be explicitly created by an API call to the support system, specifying the required channel characteristics, and new channels can also be added to an existing port. The latter mechanism allows a port to be shared across channels belonging to different channel sets; for example data can be sent from a single port to one set of destinations belonging to a merged channel set, and to a second set of destinations belonging to a serialised channel set. Digital channels and analog channels cannot be members of the same channel set. A channel can be deleted, the channel being uniquely identified by specifying its sending and receiving ports.

Channels can be implicitly created as a consequence of an application being, or becoming, a member of an application sharing set. For example, if unshared applications already have a merged or serialized channel, and the channel set name used is identical across these applications, then when the applications share with each other, the additional channels required will be created automatically. Applications are notified of channels implicitly created in this way.

Ports have an assigned connect type: event, command or null. Event ports generate an event when data is either available or is required; command ports allow the application to drive the receipt or supply of data to the port. Mull ports are reserved for ports that are unable to supply data to an application e.g. ports associated with analogue channels, such as the sending port of a video camera. Ports can be controlled through "signal₋₋ port" commands sent to their port event handler. These can be issued to the local port and can be passed to any other port in the channel. Normally, the signal commands for channel ports will be sent to the port event handler of the application either supplying or receiving data, and may be used for example to stop, start, decrease or increase the data flow. The order of signals between a source and target is maintained. Signals sent to receiving ports in a serialising channel set are serialised themselves, so that all sources receive the same sequence of commands. Other typical signals are "rewind" or "pause" to a tape drive, or "change paper size" to a printer device.

User exits can be optionally associated with ports. This allows monitoring or manipulation of the data, after it has been supplied to a sending port, or before being presented by a receiving port. In the case of synchronised channels, synchronisation is performed from after the data leaves the sending port user exit, and up to the data being presented to the receiving port user exit.

The overall structure of a standard sending command port is shown in FIG. 8. In response to a "send₋₋ data" command from an application, data is queued in a buffer 71 of port 70. The application empties the buffer to send data asynchronously over a channel 73 via a user exit 72. Incoming "signal₋₋ port" commands are received by the port event handler 74, independently of channel 73 on line 75 and can be retransmitted outwardly on line 76.

Receiving ports are effectively the mirror image of the corresponding sending port. For a standard receiving event port the structure is similar, but in this case the event handler processes both the data and the port commands.

The situation is more complex when synchronisation is involved. In this case a standard receiving buffered port must be modified by the inclusion of the synchronisation process on the incoming channel prior to the user exit and the buffer.

Serialisation logically involves the collection of all events in a central point, followed by the broadcast of each event to all the destinations for that event. Diagrammatically, this is represented by FIG. 9 for the case of two ports A and B on channels 80 and 81, serialising their output at 82 and 83 to port C (84) and another port (not shown) in serialising process 85. Serialisation can be implemented at a single central point with all data being sent there for serialisation and subsequent distribution; alternatively the serialisation process itself can be distributed.

A receiving port can cause the sending port to stop sending data down the channel, with the option to either discard or deliver the remaining data in the channel. Suspended data transmission can be resumed subsequently.

An alternative method of application inter-communication, avoiding the use of channels and ports, is provided through a "signal" command which allows control information to be sent between applications.

Ports are associated with a data class which specifies data type and data sub-type. The date type identified the nature of the data, e.g. voice, video, file etc. and also distinguishes analogue from digital date. The data types are further subdivided according to the precise format of the data; thus examples of voice sub-types are G.711, G.721, G.722.

The data class may be queried by an application to obtain the data format, independently of the data stream itself, without relying on other applications. Additionally, the data type may be different at the sending and receiving ports, with the support system performing the conversions below the API.

Certain characteristics of ports and channels can be changed after they have been initially established; for example, quality of service, data class and compression hints. This provides the flexibility for an application to modify its communications usage during execution; an example being the temporary degradation of video quality to improve file exchange performance.

Ports can be connected together to establish extended communication links, so that an application may route its inputs through to another application for processing. When ports are connected in this way, and providing user exits have not been established, no further application involvement is required after the routing has been established. This allows the streaming of data between applications and devices. Connection is permitted between channels in different channel sets, of different types, having different quality of service characteristics, of different data class or different connect types (unless one of the ports is null), provided only that one port is sending and one port is receiving. Connected ports can also be welded, so that the connection is permanent and persists even when the local application has terminated. The channel behaves in all respects as though it had been originally created from its source directly to its destination. Any user exits which may be present are removed.

Logical Devices

Logical Devices 30 (FIG. 2) are supported by the support system to enable (i) easier access to system resource and devices, such as clipboard, DDE, printer and video devices, (ii) unaware applications to be used for collaborative working, for example by giving access to the window contents and file activity of an aware application, and (iii) end to end data streaming without application involvement. Frequently used devices include: video capture, video playback, audio playback etc. and facilities are provided for additional devices to be defined.

Logical devices are identified by type; the type names are local to a node. When opened, they present a port to the application; a single logical device can have multiple ports, moreover a device can simultaneously present ports to different applications at the same node. The relevant API call to open a port allows characteristics to be established, peculiar to that device, for example the data formats to be used. Opened logical devices can be controlled through commands sent to the signal port, the commands being specific to the particular logical device. Typical commands to a device port are rewind or pause to a tape drive. The device status, for example whether data is available, can also be queried.

Devices are exactly like channel ports, except that no user exit is present. Applications can connect ports on logical devices to a channel port; this enable data to flow to or from the device and across the channel. This data flow does not require further application involvement once the connection has been made. For example, data can be streamed from a camera through a camera logical device, across a channel, and displayed by a window logical device. The application can control the two logical devices via there signal ports; when the transmission is no longer required, the application can disconnect the ports, close the devices and remove the channel.

Device ports cannot be welded to channel ports, since this would allow a device to exist outside the control of a local application. Logical devices are permitted to issue API calls to the support system, and in this regard act on behalf of the owning application (ie the application which opened the device). Devices for example can cause their owning application to share with other applications, create channels, and send or receive data.

Potential devices include:

    ______________________________________                                         system clipboard     LPTx                                                      DDE                  window                                                    shared clipboard     printer                                                   serial emulator      file                                                      video                codec                                                     audio                telephone                                                 ______________________________________                                    

Shared use of the clipboard is facilitated by the system clipboard and the shared clipboard devices. The system clipboard device may be opened by an application to provide a sending and a receiving port, giving access to the windowing system clipboard data at that node. Only one sending port may exist at any time, but any application at that node may open receiving ports. Through the use of channels, system clipboard data from one node, can be simply routed across to other members of an application sharing set.

Another device, the shared clipboard, is provided to ease data sharing. It is unique to a sharing set; only one sending port is allowed but multiple receiving ports are supported. Apart from these distinctions, it behaves in a similar manner to the system clipboard and provides a simple mechanism for applications to share common data.

The window device, allows a window, defined on the screen, to be associated with a sending or a receiving port (or in some circumstances both). The sending port can be connected to a channel port and data can be streamed to the window and displayed. A variety of data formats are supported.

The DDE device can be opened to provide sending and receiving ports which are coupled to the dynamic data exchange mechanism. Through this device an aware application can control an application that supports DDE, or be itself controlled. Moreover, by establishing the appropriate channels, two remote DDE applications can be linked together.

The printer device, allows data robe sent to the system printer; only a single sending port is permitted.

The asynchronous serial device supports one sending port and multiple receiving ports and interfaces to RS232, RS422 and other serial communications.

A number of video an d audio devices exist including: the video display and playback devices (supporting IBM/Intel ActionMedia II Adapter/A); the video capture device (supporting IBM M-Video Capture Adapter/A); the audio capture and playback devices (supporting IBM M-Audio Capture and Playback Adapter/A); and other specialised audio/video devices (such as H320 compliant codecs).

A number of aware applications are shipped as system utilities, and take advantage of these devices to offer general purpose end user functions, for collaborative working over a network.

Customisation

Customisation information for the support system 17 is stored in an appropriate platform-designated repository; for Windows and OS/2 these are the files called LAKES.INI and LAKESQOS.INI, formatted as a standard ASCII file, containing sections headed by an identifier, where keywords and their values are kept. Applications may also have their own additional initialisation filed. LAKES.INI contains standard section including information on configuration and start-up options, aware applications, devices and physical communications link; additionally application sections containing data specific to those applications may be present. LAKEQOS.INI contains quality of service information relating to physical links and data classes. Calls to access and update these files are provided in the API.

Resource Management

Collaborative working frequently requires that resources owned by a node, for example a printer device, can be shared with other nodes. Such resources are considered to be global resources and access is controlled through global tokens. Other resources are local to application sharing set, for example a shared pointer, and access to these is managed through application tokens.

A token owner determines the significance of a token and allocates it on request. At the discretion of the owner, queued requests may be permitted, and more than one concurrent holder of a particular token may be allowed. Token owners can optionally force holders to hand back tokens.

Global tokens share a common name space throughout the network, but since applications are expected to know the location of a globally available resource that they require, duplicate global token names are permitted. Facilities for the broadcasting of availability information are not provided; Instead, the call manager at the node with the global resource is responsible for resource management and therefore holds any global tokens. Global tokens may be held by an application instance on an exclusive or shared basis; token ownership, however, cannot be transferred to an application. Requests for a global token may be queued, with the queue being held above the API and managed by the node call manager. Access to global tokens is not restricted to a sharing application set.

Application token name space is restricted to the application sharing set. Tokens may be owned by any member application and ownership can be transferred. Application tokens may be held on an exclusive or shared basis and requests for tokens queued, with the queue being held above the API, and managed by the current application token owner.

Initialisation and Termination

The support system is started by running a LAKES.EXE file, which reads the profile data from the file LAKES.INI. The named call manager is started by the support system, which then registers itself as an aware application. A "set₋₋ call₋₋ manager" command then establishes this particular application as the call manager for that node. After this command, the support system is fully active at that node and is able to process incoming events and requests.

Aware applications can be initiated, either by the usual operating system procedures, such as a double click on an icon, or by a "launch" command. In the former case, the application will register with the support system, and in the return data receive its application and node handles. The call manager is notified of this registration, and supplied a handle to the application. In the latter case, the launching application is returned a handle to the application; this is only valid in very restricted circumstances until the launched application has registered with the support system. The return data provides the launched application with its application and node handles. Both the call manager and the application that specified the launch (if different) are notified accordingly.

Applications may revert to unaware application status by de-registering, the call manager being notified. All tokens held are released and the token owners are notified; all tokens owned become invalid. If the application is a member of an application sharing set it is removed and the other members notified of its departure. All ports created by the application are destroyed and the other applications owning ports to the affected channels are notified. All channels connected by the terminating application are welded and appropriate events raised at the end channel ports. Appropriate events are raised as necessary to the local call manager, plus the call managers of any nodes supporting a welded channel on behalf of the de-registering application. All open logical devices are closed; if any of the logical devices are connected to ports, destroyed as part of the de-registration process, then the whole connected channel is destroyed and the appropriate events raised.

A shutdown request can be issued by an application to close down the support system at a node in an orderly manner. This raises an event in the local call manager, and if the call manager accepts the request, corresponding shutdown events are raised at the other applications. These then prepare to close down and de-register, each de-registration being notified to the call manager. After the call manager has been notified that all the applications have de-registered, it too de-registers, to complete the shutdown.

The normal operation of the support system depends on the presence of the call manager. It is possible to replace the existing call manager with another, but the existing call manager may reject the request to do so.

Applications may join other applications in a sharing set by issuing the "share₋₋ app" request and naming an application sharing set; the normal case being where the target application and node are both specified by name. If an application at one node wants to share, by name, with an already existing instance of an application at another node, then the procedure is as follows. App 1 at node 1 issues the "share₋₋ app" request, specifying its own application and node handles as the source, and the names of app 2 and node 2 as the target. After verification with the call manager at node 1, an appropriate request is sent by the support system to thee all manager at node 2. Providing this call manager accepts the request, this is then passed onto app 2, which can return a confirmation, assuming that it wishes to accept the share. This scheme provides for considerable flexibility in application sharing. Each call manager is aware of the share activity at its node, whether applications are the source or target of "share₋₋ app" requests.

A call manager has the following options on receipt of a share request: (i) handle the share request itself (ii) transfer the share request (iii) reject the share request (iv) launch a new application to handle the share request (v) change the application and node name.

An application is not a member of an application sharing set when launched. When the source application issues a "share₋₋ app" request it has the option of naming the resulting sharing set; if it does not name the sharing set then the target must supply the name. After the share, both the target and the source join a new sharing set with this name. If either the source and/or the target were already members of a sharing set with this same name, then those sharing sets are merged with the newly created sharing set. Applications can leave a sharing set using the "unshare₋₋ app" request.

Data transmission and receipt

There are four mechanisms for applications to exchange data:

(i) User information strings

This is effectively a string passed to the support system as a parameter in an API call, which is then passed to the target application.

(ii) Signal function calls

These commands allow control information to be sent between applications, and are not restricted to those applications within a single application sharing set. Depending on the API call used, a reply will or will not be provided. Note that since this method uses the communications paths established between support systems on different nodes for their own data control flows, this technique is restricted to light data traffic.

(iii) Channel transmission

Channels are intended to support the transfer of volume data between applications. They provide the only means of controlling the transport characteristics. The use of channels is restricted to applications within the same application sharing set. When requesting the creation of a channel, the following information is specified: target application handle, channel set type and identifier, data class, maximum buffer size, user exit, node handle, quality of service, connect type, port event handler, user information. An alternative approach to channel creation is to take advantage of the channels created when applications with existing merged or serialised channel set are involved in application sharing.

Data is sent over channels by applications in packets; at the physical level the unit of data transmission is a frame. Certain data is spoilable, ie under certain conditions, if it cannot be delivered in time to meet the quality of service requirements, then it may be discarded. Some packets can be marked as spoilable, other packets as spoilers. A spoiler packet, if present, will cause the removal of those spoilable packets with which it has been associated. This technique supports for example the implementation of buffer management schemes for video, where certain packets are delta frame packets, and others are full frame packets. Selected sequences of delta frame packets can and must be deleted if a full frame is available.

(iv) logical devices

In Certain Specialised situations it is appropriate to use logical devices to exchange data. A single logical device can present ports to multiple applications; the logical device can then move data between the ports. This transport mechanism is not restricted to applications within the same sharing set and therefore overcomes a limitation placed on channels; however logical devices cannot span across nodes. Moreover any necessary quality of service support must be explicitly provided for by the particular logical device.

Negotiation of Quality of Service

Applications have different needs for quality of service and bandwidth negotiation and control. For examples, the following may be required:

pre-determined and constant quality of service, eg G.711 voice

flexible requirements at channel creation, but constant thereafter, eg file transfer

single application management of channel resources, eg an application communicating multiple data types such as video, voice, and data under restricted bandwidth conditions i.e. the video quality must be degraded intermittently to allow data traffic

cross application management of channel resource, eg a group of applications communicating multiple data types under restricted bandwidth conditions and coordinating their activities as the priorities change for different types of data traffic

Accordingly, the support system provides for the following:

applications to request an indeterminate quality of service and be allocated whatever is dynamically available

applications to query what is currently available and request a particular quality of service.

applications to manage their own communication resources,

the call manager to manage communication resources across applications.

For those applications that are satisfied with an indeterminate quality of serive, channels may be established using the a create channel request, LakCreateChannel, leaving the quality of service parameters unspecified. Bandwidth and other characteristics will not be guaranteed by the support system and may change dynamically, depending upon availability.

Certain applications have fixed quality of service requirements for the channels needed to communicate with other applications. In these cases the channels may be established directly, using a "create₋₋ channel" request. Parameters on this request identify the receiving application(s) and both the channel and the sending port characteristics. The resources are allocated by the support system if they are available without any other consideration being taken into account. Likewise, if the channel characteristics are changed or the channel is deleted and the resources which were utilised are returned to the control support system.

Some applications are more flexible in their quality of service requirements and need to determine what is available to a particular node before creating a channel and then use this information in setting the parameters of the "create₋₋ channel" request. This is accomplished through a "query₋₋ resource" command, specifying the target node. The subsequent "create₋₋ channel", establishing a channel to that node, can request an equal or lower quality of service and expect the request to be satisfied, if there is not competition for the communications resource.

Other applications have flexible quality of service requirements, but need to compromise the specification over a number of channels or need the ability to manipulate the allocation of communication resources. For example, a desktop conferencing application may wish to use the bandwidth available all the time and allocate it to video and audio. However, when data services are required, the application may temporarily re-allocate some video bandwidth to the data service and recover any such allocated resource for the video and audio at a later time. This requires the application to reserve resources and then allocate from this reserved pool. If the channels are requested directly from the support system, there is no guarantee that bandwidth, once relinquished, will be available for the later application. This problem is obviated by using the concept of resource sets. Application can request that the communication resources to a remote node are allocated to an application owned resource set; such resources are identified by the appropriate quality of service parameters. Channels are then allocated from these sets and any resources relinquished are returned to the source set. The application resource request is directed through the local call manager and it acquires the resources from the support system. This also gives the call manager the ability to manage competing requests for resources between applications. An example of the need is the situation that arise when multiple independent applications are involved in a desktop conferencing session, for example: chat, chalkboard, video and audio application. Each of these unaware of the others, but all desire bandwidth to the target node. The call manager coordinates the resource requests from the applications and allocates accordingly. In such a situation the call manager will have acquired the resources before a "share₋₋ app" request has been issued to the applications at that node so that the resources are reserved prior to the collaborating application instances being activated. The alternative approach is to request the resources after the collaboration has been started.

In some cases, the call manager needs to negotiate with application to determine what resources are available and to defer any re-allocation until the negotiations are complete. For example, a movie application starting partway through a call may require a certain minimum bandwidth that is not currently available. Other applications may be already running that, inter se, are using more than that required bandwidth and each also has the ability to be flexible in its usage. The support system provides a set of requests that enable the call manager to ask applications to relinquish bandwidth and then to commit those changes later, if sufficient total bandwidth could be made available.

Referring to FIG. 9a, this is achieved by means of a "claim₋₋ resource" command specifying a resource set identified, a quality of service, and the target node. Application 1 issues a claim resource request identifying the target node, a quality of service and the resource set identifier. The effect of the request is to reserve the requested resources in the named resource set. The identifier can then be specified in a subsequent "create₋₋ channel" command, in which case the resources are allocated from those reserves. The "query₋₋ resource" command can be used to determine remaining resources in a resource set.

The resources allocated to the APP1 resource set may be sub-allocated by the application using create₋₋ channel, change₋₋ channel and add₋₋ channel function calls, remove₋₋ channel and change₋₋ channel, with appropriate parameters, return resources to the set. Each time the claim₋₋ resource function is issued, the quality of service in the specified resource set is reset to the new values. A query resource request can be used to determine the available resources in a resource set. This provides a mechanism for an application to surrender resources which are no longer needed.

Resource set identifiers are local to an application instance and can contain resources appropriate to one particular quality of service.

Certain applications need to dynamically change their channel characteristics during execution; for, example, available bandwidth must be re-allocated across channels. This can be done through a "change₋₋ channel" request, specifying a resource set identifier. The resources are given to, or taken from, those resources associated with that identifier.

The above described technique allows, for example, a fixed resource to be secured for communications between applications and then re-allocated dynamically by an application. For example, video bandwidth can be temporarily reduced to allow the temporarily relinquished resources to be used for another purpose, such as a file transfer operation.

Cross application management of channel resources

A more complex scheme for resource allocation is required when a collection of applications need to share channel resources between two nodes. This requires an application to take on the role of resource management; typically this application will be the call manager. Referring to FIG. 9b, an example of such an approach is given.

The call manager, preparing to act as a resource manager, issues a claim₋₋ resource request, specifying the collaborative working software as the resource manager and identifying the target node, a quality of service and a resource set identifier, for example, CMI. The effect of the request is that the collaborative working software reserves the requested resources in the named resource set.

Application 1 then issues a claim₋₋ resource request, specifying the call manager as the resource manager, and identifying the target node, a quality of service and a resource set identifier, for example, APP1. This results in a RESOURCE₋₋ CLAIM event being raised in the call manager. This event includes the quality of service parameters now being requested and the existing quality of service parameters present in that resource set, in this case null. The call manager accepts the event and identifies its resource set CM1 as the resource set to be used to satisfy request of the application. This results in the transfer of resources from the resource set CM1, owned by the call manager, to the resource set APP1, owned by application 1.

The claim₋₋ resource call can be used by an application to return resources to the resource manager. Similarly, the resource manager can use this call to ask an application which has been allocated resources to relinquish them. Multiple applications can interact with the resource manager in this way and can be allocated resources from one or more resource sets.

In some cases, the resource manger needs to negotiate with applications to determine what resources are available and to defer any re-allocation until the negotiations are complete. This is accomplished using the request₋₋ resource call. An application of the above is illustrated in FIG. 9c. When the RESOURCE₋₋ CLAIM event is received from application 1, the call manager, in this example, determines whether or not application 2 can supply the resource. The determination is effected using a request₋₋ resource function call, raising a RESOURCE₋₋ REQUEST event in application 2. On return, application 2 indicates whether or not the resources are available. Application 2 should now be prepared to release the resources. At a later time, the call manager asks for the resources using the claim₋₋ resource function call. This is processed in the usual manner and results in the resources being transferred from application 2 to the call manager. When the call manager completes the processing of the outstanding RESOURCE₋₋ CLAIM event from application 1, the resources are further transferred from the call manager to application 1.

An outstanding RESOURCE₋₋ REQUEST event can be cancelled by a following RESOURCE₋₋ REQUEST event requesting a null quality of service, or by a RESOURCE₋₋ CLAIM event.

Networks

An application can specify quality of service characteristics when creating a channel or when reserving resource for later allocation to channels. Channels are mapped by the support system onto physical links; two kinds of physical links are relevant: (a) those that allow data packets to be transmitted independently of each other, for example, a token ring local area network and (b) those that allow bit streams to be transmitted, for example, the H.320 protocol.

Links are characterised by link type, order, whether switched or fixed, their time-out parameters and by their quality of service characteristics. Link type identifies the link support module (LSM) that is to be invoked to communicate over that link. Order determines the order in which the support system will attempt to use the links for data transmission, assuming that there is a choice of links available with suitable data transmission characteristics. Quality of service information characterises the communication capabilities of the link. For each link type the link selection order, and defaults for the quality of service characteristics, are stored in the configuration profile.

Link descriptions which associate remote nodes with link types, and optionally include quality of service characteristics, are stored in an address book external to the support system. The data base is accessed by an installation supplied executable, known as the address book access module.

These link characteristics, optionally including quality of service characteristics, are stored in a link data base external to the support system. Defaults for the quality of service information are contained in the initialisation files. The data base is accessed by an installation supplied executable, which is called by the support program.

The quality of service parameters relevant to digital links are: throughput, latency, jitter, frame size, frame error rate, frame re-transmission time, compression hints, encryption and priority.

Throughput describes capacity in bits per second; latency describes the average delay, in milliseconds, of a data frame; jitter characterises the variation in transmit times for individual frames. The relationship between latency and jitter is illustrated in FIG. 9d. Frame size specifies unit of transmission recovery in bits: for a bit stream network, such as H.320, it represents the H.221 frame size; frame error rate denotes the average proportion of frames that are received with errors, frame re-transmission time describes the average time in milliseconds, to re-transmit a frame, encryption denotes any encryption algorithms in use on the link, and compression hints identifies any compression routines which are to be used in relation to the data.

Several of the link quality of service parameters are difficult to quantify.

Throughput is fixed for a given configuration over ISDN, ASYNC, FDDI-II and STM links; however it is variable over token ring, Ethernet and FDDI-II. This invariablility can be accommodated by setting the throughput value to a range.

Latency and jitter are generally deterministics and values may be approximated at time of use by measurement, for example by "pinging". This variability can be catered for by the use of a range of values or by a "dont know" value. Alternatively, since many network suppliers guarantee their network to operate well enough to meet the requirements for satisfactory audio transmission, then a set of audio values can be used.

Error rates present less problems and the network performance can be monitored and these values used or a range supplied.

The support system logical channels are also normally associated with quality of service information. This can be set explicitly when the channel is created or can be set implicitly by the use of defaults related to data types and data sub-types. This default information is held in the quality of service profile.

Most of the key paramters mirror their link counterparts with the following exceptions: channel priority specifies the order in which the support system will attempt to service data transmissions over all the channels at that node; data size gives the maximum size of a block of data that will be supplied by the application to be sent over the channel; data error rate specifies an acceptable random proportion of the data blocks that need not be delivered due to loss or error in transmission (this is an expected maximum error rate that will be tolerated by the application but conformance to this limit is not guaranteed by the support system. Setting this limit to zero guarantees that the support system will attempt to deliver all data without error, notifying the application in case of failure.

The support system uses quality of service and order for available links, coupled with quality of service information for the channels requested by the application, to determine what links to use for application to application communication. A data base containing information such as type of link and service characteristics can be accessed via the resources interface, whilst the channel information is obtained from the application.

Referring to FIG. 9e, the address book, external to the support system and accessed via the resource level interface (RLI), contains link descriptions such as: type of link, source and destination nodes, quality of service characteristics, and access parameters. It is possible for all of the physical quality of service parameters to be fully supplied to the support system or, alternatively, for one or more of the values to be defaulted, typically in terms of link type, e.g. the external data my specify the link type and, optionally, one or more of the other parameters. Defaults are resolved via the contents of the configuration profile. If the link is error prone, and error free transmission is required, then the throughput, latency and jitter values are adjusted to reflect the need for frame re-transmission. The individual link values are consolidated to arrive at the physical route quality of service characteristics.

Similarly, the quality of service parameters are obtained from the application program, via the channel creation program calls. It is possible for all of the quality of service parameters to be fully specified by the application, or alternatively, for one or more of values to be defaulted, typically in terms of data types and sub-types e.g. the channel creation may specify the data type, sub-type and throughput. Default values are resolved via the contents of an initialisation file (LAKESQOS.INI). A permissible value for latency and jitter is "don't care".

The support system then selects an appropriate link to use based upon matching the fully resolved channel requirements with the fully resolved available links information, taking account of (a) the need to exchange control information between the support systems at different nodes, and (b) the order values associated with the links.

The parameters are matched as follows:

link throughput >=channel throughput,

link latency <=channel latency (or "don't known" satisfied by "don't care"),

link jitter <=channel jitter (or "don't know" satisfied by "don't care").

Both software and hardware compression and encryption are supported Hardware features on a physical link are accommodated by considering the various combination of options as different available links types, each associated with particular transport characteristics. Software routines can also be used, but these will not be invoked if specific latency and jitter requirements have been set. The quality of service profile contains the necessary information for the support system to decide whether and how compression and encryption should be used.

The packet error rate may be used in link selection and operation to determine :(a) whether error checking and retry options should be invoked in links to guarantee packet delivery, and (b) to set time-out values such that a packet arriving later than such a time-out can be deemed lost. These calculations use the link data supplied; there is no subsequent check during the channel re-transmission to determine that the packet error rate is not exceeded.

In order that the complex process of route selection can be performed outside the support system if necessary, the RLI calls used to retrieve link information also supply all the required channel quality of service characteristics. Through this mechanism, the address book access module, can itself determine the appropriate route and return that route to the support system together with parameters appropriately set to ensue acceptance. An example of the need for this might be that transmission costs vary with the time of day and should be taken into account in link selection.

Channels belonging to synchronisation sets require the data over the constituent channels to be synchronised in time. This can be represented numerically as skew, the average delay in arrival time between packets which should have arrived together. This is illustrated in FIG. 9f. Skew is not explicitly set, but us a consequence of the latency and jitter parameters for individual channels. The support software compensates for channels belonging to the same synchronisation set. Synchronisation points within the data across the channels, can be established through the start₋₋ sync and stop₋₋ sync program calls.

Link selection with no quality of service considerations

If the quality of service characteristics of a channel are left undefined then the support system will select the link to be used taking in account the order information in the LSM owned section of the configuration profile and any available quality of service. Attempts to use channels without reserved resources may need to be queued by the support system. Channel priorities will be used to resolve any resource contentions which arise.

A particular resource can be reserved into a pool using the support system claim₋₋ resource request and supplying the quality of service parameters. Channels can be sub-allocated from this pool using the create₋₋ channel and other related requests. Such sub-allocations can have undefined quality of service parameters. This approach allows a resource with particular characteristics to be reserved and then over-committed, by being allocated concurrently to multiple channels. If the application controls its use of the channels, an application may use the same resource for different data without having to continually redefine the channels. For example, an ISDN 64 Kbit channel can be used for bursts of voice interleaved with data.

The support system requires a control channel to be established between nodes for many requests. If resources have been reserved the support system will normally use these for control data. If no resources have been reserved, then the support system will choose the link type based upon the order information in the configuration profile.

Link selection and Passive nodes

A channel between nodes can be created over a single physical link or over a plurality of homogeneous or heterogeneous links. The physical connection existing between two nodes is termed a route. The relationship between channels, links and routes is illustrated in FIG. 9g.

Establishment of links via passive nodes, where quality of service conditions must be met, is a multi-stage process. In the example of FIG. 9g it can be seen that node B is only accessible via an intermediate node, X. The resource level interface query raised by, for example, the support system at node A to determine whether a link can be established with node B, will identify only the links and associated quality of service connecting node A to node X. The support system at the intermediate node, X, upon determining the intended addressee of the resource₋₋ request, issues a passive link request to the call manager at node X specifying the quality of service required from node X to node B. The call manager determines whether or not the request for passive working can be supported by checking the availability of resources from node X to node B. If the call manager at node X accepts the passive working request, the support system at node X then uses the resource level interface at that node to determine the appropriate link to use from node X to node B in order to meet the specified quality of service requirements. If such a link is available, the support system at node B decides whether or not to accept the request for a communication channel between it and node A. If the request is accepted at node B, the support system at node A is informed that connectivity to B can be established via the intermediate node X.

The quality of service criteria requested by the support system at each passive working node are chosen to ensure the cumulative quality of service over the route is acceptable. Quality of service parameters over a route, r, can be crudely approximated from the link parameters as follows

Throughput, T^(r) =Min_(j=1) ^(j=n) (T_(j) ¹)

Latency, L^(r) =Σ_(j=1) ^(j=n) (L_(j) ¹)

Jitter, J^(r) =Σ_(j=1) ^(j=n) (T_(j) ¹)

The calculation of quality of service characteristics through passive nodes also needs to take account the interconnection facilities available at each passive node between links. In many cases these facilities will preclude guaranteed quality of services.

A record of the availability of communication resources is kept and managed by the support system at each node. Upon receiving a request for particular resources, the above record is consulted and a determination is made therefrom as to whether the request can be supported. If the request can be supported, the record is updated to reflect the fact that particular resources have been allocated and are no longer available for the duration of an such allocation. Such a record can be realised using any appropriate data structure. For example table 1 below may serve the above functions

                  TABLE 1                                                          ______________________________________                                         Node    Resource % used    Resource set using resources                        ______________________________________                                         A       ISDN     50        APP1, APP2, APP3                                    B       ASYNC    90        APP2, APP4                                          C       ISDN     20        APP2                                                .       .        .         .                                                   A       TCP/IP   10        APP3                                                ______________________________________                                    

It can be seen from table 1, that resource sets APP1, APP2 and APP3 cumulatively use 50% of the ISDN resources between the node containing the table and node A, APP2 and APP4 cumulatively use 90% of the ASYNC resources and APP3 uses 10% of the TCP/IP resources between the node containing the table and node B and so on. When resources are relinquished, the above table would be altered accordingly. For example, if an application using resource set APP1 terminates, the ISDN resources allocated to resource set APP1 would be returned to the pool of resources and the table entry for ISDN would be altered accordingly.

Referring to FIG. 9h there is shown a flow diagram illustrating the steps taken when an intermediate node receives a request to support, for example, a passive working request. The request for passive working is received at the intermediate node by the support software at step 900. The request contains an indication of the destination node and the quality of service parameters required for any communication channel to that node. The support system determines whether or not the request can be supported, at step 905, as follows. The support system determines which adjacent node must be contacted in order to reach the destination node. After such a determination, the support system determines whether or not the available communication resources to the adjacent node are sufficient to support the request. The support system searches the table above to make such a determination. For example, if the request was such that ten percent of the Async resources to node B would be sufficient to meet the specified quality of service, the support system would examine the utilisation of resources to node B and note that the required ten percent is available. If the request cannot be supported the intermediate node transmits an indication to the source node of that fact at step 910. If the request can be supported the table entry "B ASYNC 90 APP2, APP4" is updated to reflect the allocation of those resources for the passive working request at step 915. The table entry would therefore be "B 100 APP2, APP4". Therefore, any further requests which would require the ASYNC resources to node B will be refused. Step 920 forwards the passive working request to the next adjacent intermediate node. Acceptance of the passive working request can be acknowledged implicitly when the destination node sends an indication that the request to establish a communication channel has been accepted. Once the passive working request reaches the destination node the above process terminates and acceptance or rejection of the request is sentries the destination node via the intermediate nodes to the source node.

Referring to FIG. 9i, there is shown part of a heterogeneous network in which node A is the source node, B to F are intermediate nodes and G is the destination node. The links between the nodes have associated jitter values. For example, the jitter between node A and node B is J_(AB). Each node stores an indication of the quality of service parameters associated with every link thereto. Therefore, for example, node A will store an indication the jitter. J_(AB) and J_(AD), associated with the links to nodes B and D. Suppose node A wishes to establish a communication channel to node G having a specified jitter, J_(s). The following actions are taken.

A) Node A determines which adjacent node it must connect to in order to reach the destination node. It can be seen that either of nodes B or D would suffice. The support system when presented with a choice of nodes may have a list of preferred nodes. Accordingly, if node B is the preferred node, the support system at node A will select node B as the first intermediate node in the route to node G.

B) The support system of node A sends a passive working request to node B specifying the destination node G and the required quality of service J_(s).

C) Node B receives the passive working request and determines the next adjacent intermediate node in the route via which the communication channel can be established. Again suppose that the link to node E is the preferred route and the resources associated therewith are available even though the communication resources to node C are also available. Node B knows that the overall jitter must be less than J_(s) and that the jitter between node B and the adjacent nodes A and E is J_(AB) and J_(BE) respectively. Therefore, then node B forwards the passive working request to node E and the specified quality of service is altered by the support system of node B to be (J_(s) -J_(AB) -J_(BE)).

D) Node E receives the passive working request and determines the next adjacent intermediate node in the route via which the communication channel can be established. Again suppose that the link to node G is the preferred route and the resources associated therewith are available. The support system at node E compares the jitter value, J_(EG) with the jitter value, (J_(s) -J_(AB) -J_(BE)), specified in the request to determine if the link can be supported. If J_(EG) is less than or equal to (J_(s) -J_(AB) -J_(BE)) then the link can be supported and the request to establish a communication channel to node G is forwarded to that node.

E) Node e receives the request to establish a communication channel and the support system thereof determines whether or not to accept the request. An indication of the determination is sent via the intermediate nodes B and E to node A.

If at any stage of the above negotiation process, it is determined that an intermediate node cannot meet the specified quality of service the established links are back tracked and alternative routes are explored. For example, suppose the support system at node E detemined that the jitter, J_(EG), over the link to node G was such that J_(EG) was greater than the specified jitter, (J_(s) -J_(AB) -J_(BE)). In such a case the request for passive working would be refused and an indication of the refusal would be send to the intermediate node from which it originated. Originating being used in a relative sense. Therefore, the refusal would be sent back to node B.

Upon receiving the refusal, node B would investigate whether or not the passive working request could be supported via an alternative node. In the instant case node C. Negotiation would therefore continue as follows:

A) Node C receives the passive working request and determines the next adjacent intermediate node in the route via which the communication channel can be established. Suppose that the link to node G is the preferred route and the resources associated therewith are available. The support system at node C determines whether the jitter, J_(CG), is less than or equal to the specified quality of service jitter (J_(s) -J_(AB) -J_(BE)). If so, the request is forwarded to node G as above and node G will respond accordingly. If not, a refusal of the request is transmitted from node C to node B. Node B has exhausted the alternative routes to node G and according sends a refusal of the request to node A.

Upon receiving the refusal from node B, node A examines the possible alternative routes and repeats the above process. Therfore, the request would go to node D and to node G via node E depending upon the respective determinations as to whether the specifed quality of service can be provided.

When applications with channels share with each other; if their existing channels belong to the same named merged or serialized channel set, the support systems create additional channels. An attest is made to establish these new channels from each sending port, with a quality of service appropriate to that port, ie an implicitly created channel will attempt to have characteristics such that it can transport satisfactorily any data packets expected to be sent down any one of the pre-existing channels from that port. In some cases, due to restrictions imposed by the capabilities of the available physical links, it will not be possible to create channels with such characteristics. However, in all cases a channel will be created, and it is the responsibility of the application program to query the channel capabilities, if these are likely to be significant.

A channel between nodes may be realised over a single physical link, or over multiple, serially connected links. The physical connection existing between two nodes is termed a route.

a) Permanent Digital Networks

The support system operates with either dedicated of shared, switched or permanent, digital links between nodes. Shared links have unpredictable latency and bandwidth characteristics, unless bandwidth management facilities are being employed. Such features give permanent links many of the characteristics of switched connections.

b) Permanent Analogue Networks

The support system supports analogue communications in a very similar way to digital communications, in those situations where:

analogue links exist between nodes.

connectivity and routing at each node can be controlled by the system at that node.

a digital control channel exists between the nodes.

Analogue channels are logically dedicated uni-directional communication links established by the sending application, and they may terminate in more than one receiving application. They may be distinguished from digital channels by signal type value. Ports terminating these analogue channels have a null connect type since they cannot supply or receive data from applications. Only standard or merged channels may be established; serialising and synchronising channel sets are not permitted.

Logical devices can present analogue ports when opened; thus a video player device can be used as a source of analogue video and may be connected to an analogue channel through an support system API call. The direct connection of analogue and digital channels is not supported; however certain devices e.g. a codec device could provide both analogue and digital ports when opened and can be used to effect such a coupling.

c) Switched Digital Networks

Switched digital networks can be used by the support system for inter-node communication without exposing the switched nature of the connection. The support system decides when to terminate an inactive switched digital connection using information in the configuration profile; for a specific connection this can be overwritten by information dynamically supplied through the RLI.

Equipment, such as digital telephones, attached to a switched network, are accessed by applications in one of two ways. If a simple connection is all that is required then the telephone may be regarded as a virtual phone application executing at a virtual node. The connection to the phone is initiated by a share request specifying the virtual phone as the target of the share request. The support system will then simulate the appropriate events for the other participants of the share. The effect is that a telephone call will be established between a telephone associated with the local node and the remote telephone. Incoming calls are handled in the same way i.e. as a SHARE₋₋ REQUEST event coming from the a virtual phoen application at a virtual node. Details identifying the true nature of the communicating device are made available in the user information field.

If it is required to control the extra features of the digital telephone, then the phone may be accessed by application through a suitable support system logical device. Thus an ISDN phone device may be written which, when opened, presents receiving and sending ports, with an associated event or command connect type; dialling, and other control functions, are implemented through "signal₋₋ port" commands. Third party connection between digital telephone equipment is similarly affected through commands to an appropriate device; this may be physically implemented through commands to the local switch.

Potentially active multi-point control units, which dynamically modify data or routing, for example, an MCU implementing the CCITT recommendations for audio-visual communication, may also appear as devices to applications.

d) Switched Analogue Networks

Analogue telephones and other equipment, attached to the public switched network, may be accessed by the support system in a similar manner to digital telephones, i.e. either as a virtual phone application executing at a virtual node, or through a logical device. A PSTN telephone logical device can be written which, when opened, presents a support system port, with a null connect type i.e. it does not supply or receive data from an application. "Signal₋₋ port" request may be used to control the device. First party connection can be implemented through a modem injecting dialling tones into the local line; third party connection, and multi-way calls through commands to the local switch.

The support system determines when to terminate an inactive switched analogue connection using the default information in the appropriate LSM owned section of the configuration profile; for a specific connection this can be overwritten by information dynamically supplied through the RLI.

Interfacing to Unaware Applications

The support system provides facilities which permit unaware applications to be used for collaborative working. An aware application supplies the user interface dialogue and interacts with the particular unaware application via virtual devices. This same aware application then communicates with a related aware application at the remote node to pass the information to the remote user. Several such applications are included as general purpose utilities.

A common requirement is for an application window of an unaware application to be displayed at a remote node as illustrated in FIG. 11. The implementation is as follows: an aware application A_(X) at node X dialogues with the user to identify the window required, assumed here to be the unaware application U_(X). A_(X) then opens a window display logical device, with the appropriate parameters, the effect of which is to generate a port through which copies of the window data are made available. A_(X) connects this to a port on a channel leading to an aware application A_(Y) at the destination node Y. A_(Y) then opens a real window logical device, and connects the port created to the receiving channel port. Data flows between the nodes, and is displayed at Y, without the further intervention of either application A_(X) or A_(Y). Options available on the windows logical device open request allow the application to specify such parameters as bits/pixel, frequency of update and data format (e.g. text, bit map and option of included pointer position).

Remote pointers over the shared window of the unaware application U_(X) can be handled by A_(X) and A_(Y) setting up a channel suitable for the interactive data class. The real pointer on each node is then used for identifying features in the shared window; this can be achieved with an algorithm such as: each user wishing to point moves his pointer into the shared window; when pointers are in the shared window their co-ordinates are transmitted to the sharing applications. The combined co-ordinates are then used to control the pointers; the effect is that whoever moves the cursor last, positions all the linked pointers.

Remote printing and remote file generating are similarly accomplished through logical devices. In the case of printing, a printer emulator device is installed at the source node. When it is selected as the printer device by the user, the effect is to redirect the printer data stream to a port. This is then connected, via the aware applications, to a real printer device at the destination node. This general technique is extended for a range of other capabilities such as dynamic data exchange (DDE) and the system clipboard.

Remote control of an application or system is not supported directly; however an application to perform remote control can be implemented above the API, with Lakes providing the group communication and multi-media data transmission facilities.

Programming Considerations

a) Program Call Types and Structure

Program calls to the API generally result in a request, indication, response, confirm sequence. An application A, requiring a service, requests that service, supplying the appropriate parameters. The request usually requires another application B being made aware of that request; the mechanism for this is an unsolicited event which appears as an indication at the application B. The action taken by B to the indication event is given to the support system as a response, with appropriate data. The system passes the information back to application A as a confirm event. This is illustrated in FIG. 12 using the example of the sequence involved in adding a port to a channel (for simplicity no parameters are shown).

An API call may be either synchronous or asynchronous, depending upon the particular function; a synchronous call returns control when the request is complete, an asynchronous call returns control immediately. To help applications monitor the progress of an asynchronous call, these calls contain a reference identifier. This identifier is valid until the request has been satisfied and queries can be issued to obtain status; this same identifier can also be used to cancel a pending request. All calls pass back a return code denoting call status.

b) Addressability

An application requests addressability to nodes by using the node name. This name is first passed to the local call manager which has the option to modify it. The resultant name is then used by the support system to determine connectivity information, this requires access to the externally held network and user data base, using the resources interface. Thus the support system determines physical addressability for that name through queries to the network configuration via the resources interface 29, FIG. 2. A node handle is returned to the application to reflect this resolution of the node name. Addressability from one application to another application requires the resolution of an application name. If both applications are at the same node, the local call manager can perform this resolution, else both call managers must be involved. This resolution results in the target application being identified to the source application by an application handle. Calls using application names are always passed to the call manager for resolution; calls using application handle go direct to the specified application.

When an application creates a channel, addressability to the channel port is provided through the system returning a port handle. Similarly the opening of a logical device results in a device port handle.

All handles are guaranteed to be unique to the using application but are not valid if passed to other applications or nodes.

c) Event Classes and Event Handlers

API requests are provided to assist with event and call control. A "begin₋₋ monitor" request allows an application to monitor requests and events at a node, the scope of the monitoring being controlled by the choice of monitor class from one of the following:

All: all events or API calls

Application Signalling: signal events/API calls

Call₋₋ manager: call manager events/API calls.

Data: data transmission events/API calls.

Device: device events/API calls.

Monitor: monitor events/API calls.

Port: port and channel events/API calls.

Profile: profile events/API calls.

Share: share and unshare events/API calls.

Synchronisation: synchronisation events/API calls.

Token: token events/API calls.

The scope of the monitoring is controlled at the event or API class level. Events can be monitored with or without data. Monitoring is terminated with an "end₋₋ monitor" command. Applications can also use the "enable₋₋ events" and "disable₋₋ events" commands to determine which events they are to receive. The valid event classes are:

All: all events

Device: device events

Port: port and channel events

Profile: profile events or API calls

Sharing: share request events or API calls

A default event handler generates responses for all events not explicitly handled via an applications. Events are handled by registered event handles: four types can exist in aware applications:

Application: this is the primary event handler that handles the main events related to the general operation of an aware application. This event handler must be present in all aware applications, including a call manager.

Call₋₋ manager: this is somewhat specialised and handles those events concerned with application registration, name resolution, shutdown requests, passive nodes, call manager transfer, and global token status. This event handler must be present in all call managers.

Port₋₋ event handler: more than one port event handler may be present and each handles data communications related events.

Monitor: this is optionally present and handles all monitoring of events.

d) Other Programming Facilities

All channel ports can be associated with a user exit to monitor data traffic or process data. For a sending port, the user exit is invoked immediately prior to the data being transmitted to the receiving nodes; for a receiving port, the user exit is invoked immediately the data arrives at the receiving port but prior to the data being presented to the receiving application. Specification of a user exit routine on ports which have been connected may impact performance because the data must be surfaced to the user exit.

A full set of queries are provided to avoid applications needing to keep track of status information.

Application program debugging can be simplified by initially running collaborating applications at a single node; this avoiding physical networks being required during initial stages of program development.

No user interface code exists below the API; all user interactions are the responsibility of either the application program, or the code servicing requests across the resources interface.

Utilities

A number of pre-programmed utilities are provided in order to immediately provide useful function to end users and reduce the programming effort required to develop new collaborative applications, by providing common functions accessible through a command interface.

All the utilities are replaceable application programs. The structure of the provided utilities is shown below in FIG. 13. The supplied utilities install as a program group and are designed as a suite of applications which work together. The major utility functions can be invoked from other application programs by means of the "signal" command, as well as directly by the user.

a) Directory and Call Management

i) Address Book

The address book utility 100 allows an end user to add, delete and update directory and connectivity information. The data is stored in a simple file structure which is easily edited by standard programs, although a mechanism is provided to interface with other potentially more extensive and complex address data-bases. User data can be grouped into logical collections known as phone books. The utility interfaces directly to the call manager; it also responds to queries through the resources interface.

ii) Call Manager

The call manager utility 101 implements the concept of a call. A call refers to a group of users collaborating by using shared applications. More than one call can exist at any time, users can be in more than one simultaneous call, and the same applications can be executed in multiple calls. For example: the users A, B and C can be in a call, x, to review a document; all may using voice communication with each other, A and B may also have a video link, and A and C may also have a shared chalkboard. Meanwhile, A, B and D may be in a second call y, to review a second document; with A and D using a chalkboard, and B and D using voice links.

The call concept does not exist in the API but it is implemented by the call manager through application sharing sets. Providing this support avoids the need for aware applications to be involved in call set-up or tear-down and provides clear separation of call management and application programming. The call manager provides dialogues for an end user to select names from the address book and logically establish a multi-point call..Parties can be added and deleted dynamically. Options provided include auto-answer and call barring. One call is deemed to be the current active call and it is the one to which shared applications are normally added when invoked. The current active call may be relegated to the background whilst another call is set-up.

b) User Utilities

i) Application Assistant

This utility implements the following functions for users in a call:

direct mirroring of an existing application window, either as a snapshot or continuously, and has the system pointing device enabled as a remote pointer.

system clipboard support i.e. the ability for the contents of a system clipboard at one node to be optionally shared and/or viewed at other nodes.

remote DDE links able to be established between applications at different nodes.

redirection of printing to printers at other nodes.

ii) Chalkboard

The chalkboard 103 implements a common drawing area with two image planes, which is accessible to all users in a call. The background plane can be loaded from bit-map files, the system clipboard, or from the contents of an application window. The foreground plane can be used for interactive annotation using a range of simple text and graphics tools. Remote pointers over the chalkboard are also supported.

iii) File Transfer

File transfer 104 allows the transmission of files between users in a call. One or more files can be transferred, the files can be sent with comments, and the original file names are made available to the destination. The receiving node is in full control of file receipt and file naming.

iv Message Line

Message line 105 provides immediate sharing of text data between users in a call. Multiple simultaneous users are permitted; each participant sees all the exchanged messages, and in the same sequence. The message utility also logs activity during the call; such as calls set-up and terminated, and files transferred. In an actual embodiment this utility is provided as part of the call manager.

v) Video/Voice Link

This utility 106 allows the establishment of video and voice links between users in a call. The precise function available is dependent upon the capabilities of the physical network and the workstation hardware support.

Standards

The overall architecture is intended to support a broad range of collaborative applications. The interface is set at as high a level as possible, consistent with not imposing any significant restraints on the range of application models that may be implemented. The nature of the transport networks involved are totally hidden below the API. This means that an application is completely unaware of the network routing (eg direct or indirect), and the network types involved (eg single or multiple links, switched or fixed connections). A consequence of this approach is that the applications must be written expecting that requests, for example for a particular communications quality of service, may fail, since the underlying network may not have the required capability.

An agent philosophy has been implemented so that third party applications can be sued to act on behalf of other applications. This permits call manager, telephony, and switching applications to be developed. The current state of technology requires that analog networks and devices should be supported. It is attempted to treat .analog networks like digital networks, in order to ease application migration.

At the API level, one of the key concepts exposed is that of applications sharing sets. Applications are expected to collaborate with other applications, and the mechanism for this collaboration is that they join each other in named application sharing sets. The essence of such an application sharing set is that all set members receive information on the status of all the other members; joining a set is the way in which applications declare those in which they have an interest. The concept of the call by contrast exists above the API, and in particular at the call manager. It is possible for different call managers to have different call models.

Alongside the application sharing set, the channel is the other fundamental concept in the architecture. Uni-directional channels are used as the basic communications building block to efficiently support both broadcast and two-way communications. The channels are established by the sending application, and accepted by the receiving application, because only the sending application can be aware of the properties of the data which dictate how it should be transmitted. Both applications can independently control the format to be supplied or received to or from their respective ports. Multiple logical channels, for each kind of data flow, allow the support system to allocate the traffic appropriately to the underlying transport network; moreover it lets other applications have data presented to them in separated, homogeneous flows, each individually described. Additionally this split of the inter-application traffic into individual data types, allow the support system to offer data conversion facilities.

Connections and welding of channels allows the transport of data to drop below the API so that the application is no longer involved in moving the data. The support system has the option, in some cases, of effecting the connection, either at a very low level at that node, or re-routing the flow away from that node.

The support system architecture is designed to permit inter-working between different computer platforms, operate over varied communications networks, and support relevant communication and data standards.

The separation of data traffic into logical uni-directional flows of homogeneous data, simplifies the mapping on to a mixed network and allows the use of multiple physical links, of different capabilities, between the nodes. Data multiplexing is handled below the application and can be implemented in different ways depending upon the underlying transport mechanism, e.g. by a combination of: allocating each logical flow to an individual physical link; multiplexing all the data in the support layer; or by leaving aspects of the multiplexing to a device driver. Through this means voice, video and data traffic, for instance, can be sent over multiple channels, over iso-LAN or iso-Ethernet, or over ISDN using the CCITT H320 recommendations. The quality of service requirements impose conditions on the required transport facilities; thus voice and video typically require dedicated physical links or shared links with isochronous capability, implemented through schemes involving priority and bandwidth management.

The separate logical data paths provided by channels, with their associated data types, ease inter-application operation because the data components are presented individually, with their nature and format independently available. Through this mechanism, a wide range of existing standards for voice, video, image, file transfer, end coded data can be supported, with the potential for the support system to perform data conversions in the network. The system also provides a separate data class for the interactive objects commonly used in collaborative applications, such as remote pointers, cursors and gestures.

Overview of the API Commands

The principal facilities offered by the API calls are detailed below. The syntax and parameters of the actual calls is not described because the intent is only to give an overview of the scope.

API Function Requests

Session and application sharing

cancel₋₋ request: cancels a previous asynchronous request if that request is not already satisfied.

deregister₋₋ app: issued by an application instance to terminate its use of the API.

launch₋₋ app: issued by an application to invoke another application.

register₋₋ app: identifies the issuing application instance as a wire and establishes the application event handler.

set₋₋ call₋₋ manager: identifies the call manager for that node and establishes the call manager event handler.

share₋₋ app: issued by an application instance to request the sharing of one application with another application.

shutdown₋₋ node: issued by an application instance to request the shutting down of the support system at its local node.

unshare₋₋ app: issued by an application instance to terminate the sharing of one application instance with another application.

Devices and Ports

add₋₋ channel: adds, in a specified application instance, another channel to a specified sending port.

change₋₋ channel: changes the specified channel characteristics.

change₋₋ device₋₋ characteristics: changes the specified device characteristics.

change₋₋ port: changes the specified port characteristics.

claim₋₋ resource: call to a resource manager for resources associated with a particular quality of service.

close₋₋ device₋₋ port: closes the associated port on the defined device.

connect₋₋ ports: connects a specified receiving port to a specified sending port.

create₋₋ channel: creates a data transmission channel consisting of a sending port at the issuing application and a receiving port at the specified target application.

disconnect₋₋ ports: disconnects the specified receiving port from the specified sending port.

open₋₋ device₋₋ port: opens a port on a defined device.

remove₋₋ channel: removes the channel associated with the specified receiving port and the specified sending port.

request₋₋ resource: enquiry to a resource manager for resources associated with a particular quality of service.

resume₋₋ port: resumes data transmission through the specified port.

signal₋₋ port: transmits a control string through a specified port.

suspend₋₋ port: suspends data transmission through the specified port after draining or flushing any data not yet received.

weld₋₋ connection: makes the connection of the specified receiving port and the sending port permanent.

Data Transmission and Receipt

receive₋₋ data: receives data from the specified receiving command port.

send₋₋ data: sends data asynchronously through the specified sending port. Various transmission acknowledgements may be requested.

signal: transmits support system or application defined control data over a support system established control channel to a specified application instance.

signal₋₋ app₋₋ with₋₋ reply: transmits support system or application defined control data over a support system established control channel to a specified application instance, and returns the response data.

start₋₋ sync: starts the synchronisation of data received through receiving ports associated with a specified channel set.

stop₋₋ sync: stops the synchronisation of data for all receiving ports associated with a specified channel set.

Token Management

get₋₋ token: requests the immediate holding of the specified global or application token either exclusively or in a shared manner.

give₋₋ token: gives the specified token to the specified requester.

qget₋₋ token: requests either the holding of the specified global or application token either exclusively or in a shared manner, or, if the token is not available, the joining of a request queue maintained by the current owner.

reclaim₋₋ token: forces the specified token held by the specified application instance to be immediately released back to the current owner of the token.

refuse₋₋ token: refuses the specified token to the specified requester.

release₋₋ token: releases the specified held token back to the current owner.

return₋₋ token: requests that the specified application instance holding the specified token should return the token back to the current owner as soon as possible.

set₋₋ token₋₋ owner: sets the owner of the specified token to the specified application instance.

Event Control

begin₋₋ monitor: causes special monitoring events identifying each occurrence of an API call, and/or a normal event to be presented to the specified monitoring event handler.

default₋₋ event₋₋ handler: returns default responses for all events that an application programmed does not wish to handle explicitly.

disable₋₋ events: stops events of the specified event class being passed to the event handler of the issuing application instance.

enable₋₋ events: allows events of the specified event class to be passed to the event handler of the issuing application instance.

end₋₋ monitor: stops the special monitoring events identifying each occurrence of an API call, and/or a normal event being presented.

Profile Management

read₋₋ profile₋₋ string: returns a character string of a specified keyword in a specified section from a profile file.

write₋₋ profile₋₋ string: copies a character string to a specified keyword in a specified section the profile file.

API Queries

query₋₋ address: returns the completed full address of an application instances belonging to a named sharing set.

query₋₋ application₋₋ status: returns status of an application (unaware, aware or call manager).

query₋₋ channel₋₋ characteristics: returns the channel characteristics of the channel associated with the specified sending and receiving ports.

query₋₋ channel₋₋ set: returns the handles of all the ports in a specified channel set.

query₋₋ device₋₋ characteristics: returns the device characteristics of the specified device.

query₋₋ device₋₋ status: returns the status of the specified device.

query₋₋ monitor: returns the class of functions or events currently being passed to the monitor event handler.

query₋₋ port₋₋ characteristics: returns the characteristics of the specified port.

query₋₋ port₋₋ status: returns the status of the specified port.

query₋₋ resource: returns the resources available in the specified resource set.

query₋₋ sharing₋₋ set: returns the sharing set identifiers for an application instance.

query₋₋ token₋₋ holder: returns the owner (application tokens only) and holder of a token.

query₋₋ token₋₋ state: returns the state of the specified token.

API Events

Call Manager Events

APP₋₋ DEREGISTERED: an event to the local call manager when the application instance terminates its use of the API.

APP-REGISTERED: an event to the local call manager when an application initializes its use of the API.

CALL₋₋ MANAGER₋₋ ERROR: an error has occurred which affects the call manager.

CALL₋₋ MANAGER₋₋ REQUEST: art event to the-local call manager indicating that another local application has issued a set₋₋ call₋₋ manager function request.

NODE₋₋ SHUTDOWN₋₋ REQUEST: a request for the support system to shut down.

PASSIVE₋₋ NODE₋₋ RELEASED: an indication that the resources allocated to allow the node to support passive requests may be released.

PASSIVE₋₋ NODE₋₋ REQUEST: a request for the node to allocate resources to support a passive request.

SHARE₋₋ REQUEST: a request to share with a named application.

TOKEN₋₋ STATUS₋₋ REQUEST: a request for status of a global token.

Application Events

APP₋₋ SIGNAL: a signal has been received.

APP₋₋ SIGNAL₋₋ REJECTED: a signal has been rejected.

APP₋₋ SIGNAL₋₋ WITH₋₋ REPLY: a signal₋₋ with₋₋ reply has been received.

APP₋₋ SIGNAL₋₋ TRANSFERRED: a signal has been transferred.

APP₋₋ UNSHARE₋₋ REQUEST: a third party local application has requested that the recipient leave an application sharing set.

APP₋₋ UNSHARED: a notification the issuer is leaving an application sharing set has been received.

APP₋₋ ERROR: a related application error has been detected.

NODE₋₋ SHUTDOWN: a shut down has been initiated.

PORT₋₋ REMOVED: a confirmation that a port has been removed.

PORT₋₋ REQUEST: a request to add a receiving port.

RESOURCE CLAIM: raised whenever an application claims its quality of service resources.

RESOURCE REQUEST: raised whenever an application requests its quality of services resources.

PROFILE₋₋ CHANGED: an indication that the LAKES.INI or LAKESQOS.INI file has been changed.

SHARE₋₋ CONFIRMED: a confirmation that a share request had processed has been received.

SHARE₋₋ REJECTED: a request to share has been rejected.

SHARE₋₋ REQUEST: a request to share has been received.

SHARE₋₋ TRANSFERRED: a request to share has been transferred.

TOKEN₋₋ CANCEL₋₋ REQUEST: a request to cancel a queued token request has been received.

TOKEN₋₋ GIVEN: a token has been given to a requester.

TOKEN₋₋ QREQUEST: a request to hold a token or to join the queue if the token is unavailable.

TOKEN₋₋ RECLAIMED: a token has been taken away by owner,

TOKEN₋₋ RECLAIMED: a token has been taken away by owner.

TOKEN₋₋ REFUSED: a request for token has been refused,

TOKEN₋₋ REQUEST: a request to hold a token.

TOKEN₋₋ RETURN₋₋ REQUEST: the owner of the token requires that the token be returned as soon as possible.

Device and Port Events

CHANNEL CHANGED: some channel characteristics have been changed.

CHANNEL₋₋ CONFIRMED: a new channel has been created.

CHANNEL₋₋ DESTROYED: a channel has been destroyed.

CHANNEL₋₋ REJECTED: a channel has not been created.

CONNECTION₋₋ WELDED: a weld connection notification has been received.

DATA₋₋ AVAILABLE: data is available at a receiving port.

DATA₋₋ CONFIRMED: a confirmation of a data transmission has been received, or an estimate of the progress of a data transmission.

DATA₋₋ REQUESTED: data is requested from a sending port.

DEVICE₋₋ INFORMATION: an event raised to the sending port event handler of the application instance that is to supply device information.

PORT₋₋ ERROR: a port error has been detected.

PORT₋₋ RESUME₋₋ REQUEST: a resume port request has been received.

PORT₋₋ SIGNALLED: a signal port event has been received.

PORT₋₋ SUSPEND₋₋ REQUEST: a suspend port request has been received.

PORT₋₋ SYNC₋₋ REQUEST: a request to adjust the synchronising control has been received.

Monitor Control Events

EVENT₋₋ MONITORED: a notification .of function request and event activities has been received.

Channel, Port and Link Characteristics

Channel Characteristics

The following parameters are associated with a channel and are established on the create₋₋ channel and add₋₋ channel requests.

quality₋₋ of₋₋ service:

signal type (analog or digital)

throughput

latency

jitter

lateness

priority

compression hints

encryption

Quality of service characteristics are associated through data type and subtype in the LAKESQOS.INI file, but can be specified explicitly. They may be left undefined; this allows channels to be created whose operational characteristics depend upon the resources available when data is being sent down the channel.

channel₋₋ type:

standard

merged

serialised

synchronised

channel₋₋ set₋₋ id:

identifier

Port Characteristics

The following parameters are associated with a port; all except port-type are defined explicitly; sending ports specify these parameters on the create₋₋ channel request, receiving ports specify them on the PORT₋₋ REQUEST response.

connect₋₋ type:

command

event

null

event₋₋ handler:

port₋₋ type:

sending

receiving

data₋₋ class:

data type

data sub-type

user₋₋ exit:

user₋₋ information:

Link Characteristics

The following quality of service parameters are associated with a physical link and are specified in the network data base accessed via the link locator, or obtained as defaults from the LAKEQOS.INI file.

signal type (analog or digital)

throughput

latency

jitter

frame size

frame error rate

frame re-transmission time

compression hints

encryption

Support System Structure

Referring back to the support system structure as illustrated in FIG. 10, the various tasks of the components thereof will now be described in more detail. The application manager 223 acts as an interface to the rest of the support system, providing an entry point for all the API calls which are then distributed to the appropriate component after a certain amount of parameter verification. It is also used to scan incoming calls/outgoing events if monitoring is required (see below).

The application manager is responsible for calling back the application at the event handler specified when a channel is created. The events will be those raised at the sending port if the local application created the channel, or then receiving port if the remote application created the channel. When creating a port, the application manager passes the address of an event queue handler which will handle all the events for a particular application and place them in a queue. Then, some mechanism such as a dispatch thread continuously reading the event queue sends the event to the application's event handler.

The channel manager 227 has five sub-components: a channel supervisor, responsible for starting and shutting down all the other components; a control channel sub-component, which handles control channel communications between support systems at different nodes; a data channel sub-component, which handles all other non-control channel data communications; a node manager, which creates, destroys, and maintains node handles and sets of node handles; and a port manager, which creates, destroys, and manipulates ports and does port query functions.

The resource manager 225 is the first component in the support system to get control. It is responsible for initialising all the other components, as well as interfacing to any address book or route selection facilities. The token manager 224, as its name suggests, is responsible for the logging and management of tokens, both global and application tokens (global tokens are owned by the respective call manager components; by contrast application tokens are owned by a node in a sharing set).

The device manager 224 is responsible for interactions between the support system and devices, and in particular performs the following functions: resolving devices names to fully qualified path etc, loading appropriate dynamic link library (DLL), generating a record containing the port number, port handler and event word, calling the initialisation entry point, and resolving all entry handles in the DLL to physical address for the application call manager. The signal manager 226 is responsible for signalling to applications (with or without reply) and to ports.

Sharing and Call Manager Installation

Having now described the overall operation of the collaborative support system, various sharing and call manager set up operations will now be described in more detail. The API command which establishes a call manager is set₋₋ call₋₋ manager.

The set₋₋ call₋₋ manager function requests that the issuer be established as the new call manager at the issuing node and identifies the event handler to be invoked for call manager events.

Parameters required by the set₋₋ call₋₋ manager functions are:

    ______________________________________                                         event.sub.-- handler                                                                        the event handler to be invoked for call                                       manager events.                                                   event.sub.-- word                                                                           A user specified data pointer paused to the                                    call manager event handler on all call                                         manager events.                                                   call.sub.-- manager.sub.-- info                                                             (returned). The value returned by the current                                  call manager in response to the                                                SET.sub.-- CALL.sub.-- MANAGER event.                             ______________________________________                                    

The set₋₋ cell₋₋ manager() function identified to the subsystem the event handler that is to receive any events of a non-application specific nature, i.e. any incoming events from the network that do not identify a specific application instance. (Note. The events may specify a destination application name, in which case, it is the function of the call manager to resolve the name to a specific instance).

Only one set₋₋ call₋₋ manager() event handler can be active at any one time on any given node. More than one set₋₋ call₋₋ manager() may be issued by applications running on a given node, but the last one issued is the one that is in effect (i.e. that application instance is the call manager for that node).

Before issuing the set₋₋ call₋₋ manager() function call an application must have issued an register₋₋ app() function all to identify itself to the local system.

When a new application issues a set₋₋ call₋₋ manager() function call, the processing depends on whether or not there is already an existing call manager.

If no call manager exists then no event is raised and the issuer becomes the current call manager.

If a call manager already exists then it will receive a SET₋₋ CALL-MANAGER event. This existing call manager has the option of allowing the transfer of the call manager function to the new application or rejecting the request. In this case the existing call manager stays in control and the issuer receive the RC₋₋ CM₋₋ REQUEST₋₋ REJECTED return code. This allows some control over which applications are authorised to become call managers.

There must always be an application instance running that has issued a set₋₋ call₋₋ manager, otherwise no communication can happen with any other node.

The LAKES.INI file can have a section in it, specifying the names of the applications that are authorised to become call managers. So that when a SET₋₋ CALL₋₋ MANAGER event is raised at the current call manger, it can check in the file via the get₋₋ profile₋₋ string function call to see if the application is authorised.

The register₋₋ app function registers the name of the issuing application instance and the event handler to handle incoming events.

Parameters required are:

    ______________________________________                                         application.sub.-- name                                                                      The name by which the issuing application                                      is to be known to the system                                     event.sub.-- handler                                                                         address of the event handler to be                                             invoked by the system to handle                                                incoming events for the issuing                                                application instance.                                            event.sub.-- word                                                                            A user specified data pointer passed to the                                    call manager event handler on all                                              call manager events                                              node.sub.-- handle                                                                           (returned) node handle to issuing node                           application.sub.-- handle                                                                    (returned) application instance handle                                         to issuing application.                                          ______________________________________                                    

In order for an application instance to be allowed to communicate with the system, it must identify itself by issuing an register₋₋ app call. This call must be issued prior to any other calls from this instance, otherwise the calls will fail and an error code returned.

The application₋₋ name,event₋₋ handler and the event₋₋ word must be supplied. The node₋₋ handle and application₋₋ handle are returned by the system. They define the unique handles within the node and have no scope or meaning outside of the local node.

As a result of the register₋₋ app function call, an APP₋₋ REGISTER event is raised in the call manager even handler if one exists, If no call manager exists then no event is raised and the issuer of the register₋₋ app function call will receive the return code RC₋₋ NO₋₋ CALL₋₋ MANAGER. The issuer should then either become the call manager by issuing the set₋₋ call₋₋ manager() function call or terminate by issuing the deregister₋₋ app() function call.

This is the only function call that is valid prior to a set₋₋ call₋₋ manager() having been issued, i.e. prior to a valid call manager having been identified.

The launch function causes the specified target application to be invoked.

Parameters required are:

    ______________________________________                                                 target.sub.-- application                                                                     pointer to a structure                                  containing                                                                                            the full address of the target                                                 application. The full address                                                  structure type is defined as                                                   follows:                                                target.sub.-- exe.sub.-- string                                                                 pointer to a character string                                                  specifying the fully qualified                                                 name (including the full path)                                                 for the executable for the                                                     target application                                            working.sub.-- directory                                                                        pointer to a character string                                                  specifying the directory. IF                                                   the working.sub.-- directory is null                                           then the current directory is                                                  assumed.                                                      parameters       a user specified string that                                                   is given to the launched                                                       application.                                                  application.sub.-- handle                                                                         (returned) application instance                                                handle                                                                         of the launched application.                                ______________________________________                                    

This function is used to ask the system to start another application instance. IF the new application is started successfully then its instance handle is inserted in the target₋₋ application and returned to the calling application.

It is up to the launched application to use an register₋₋ app to fully identify itself to the system (if it is to be an aware application). launch may be issued by any aware application, it is not restricted to the currently active call manager.

The share function requests that the specified target application be shared with the specified source application.

Parameters required are:

    ______________________________________                                         async.sub.-- id                                                                               a user supplied reference id by which this                                     call and all events related to this call                                       may be identified. This parameter can not                                      be zero.                                                        source.sub.-- application                                                                     pointer to a structure containing the full                                     address of the source application.                              target.sub.-- application                                                                     pointer to a structure containing the full                                     address of the target application.                              user.sub.-- info                                                                              a user specified string that is returned on                                    all events generated by this share.                             ______________________________________                                    

Possible Return Codes are:

    ______________________________________                                         RC.sub.-- OK   Operation completed successfully.                               RC.sub.-- FAIL LAKES environment not established.                              RC.sub.-- SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED                                                              returned to a synchronous share () to                                          confirm that the share has been accepted                        RC.sub.-- SHARE.sub.-- REJECTED                                                               returned to a synchronous share () to                                          confirm that the share has been rejected                        RC.sub.-- INVALID.sub.-- ADDRESS                                                              Invalid address structure                                       ______________________________________                                    

The share function request that the source application and target application are to be (or added into) an "application set".

If the target application is specified by name, then the call manager at the relevant node will be invoked, it is then the responsibility of the call manager at the target node to decide how to handle the share request.

If the target application is specified by instance handle, then the share request is passed directly to the desired application and does not go via the call manager.

The user₋₋ info parameter would should normally be used to tell the target node how or why the application is to be shard.

The appropriate return code (RC₋₋ SHARE₋₋ CONFIRMED or RC₋₋ SHARE₋₋ REJECTED) will be returned. If the local system receives a subsequent SHARE₋₋ CONFIRMED event from the target application then this event is not raised to the issuer of the share function call but is handled by the system generating an appropriate UNSHARE event. IF the local system received a subsequent SHARE₋₋ REJECTED event from the target application then this event is ignored.

A share request specifying an application name rather than a handle, is directed to the call manger. This allows the call manager to decide how treat the share, e.g. it could:

launch the specified application thus creating a new instance

launch a completely different application.

direct the share to an existing instance

redirect the share to a different instance

handle the share entirely within the call manager.

If the call manager issued a launch for an application as a result of a SHARE₋₋ REQUEST event, it must then re-issue the share request on behalf of the original requester to the launched application.

The unshare function terminates the sharing between the source application and the applications in it sharing set.

PARAMETERS required are:

    ______________________________________                                         async.sub.-- id                                                                              a user supplied reference id by which this                                     call and all events related to this call                                       may be identified. This parameter can not                                      be zero.                                                         source.sub.-- application                                                                    pointer to a structure containing the short                                    address of the source application. A short                                     address structure is defined as follows.                         user.sub.-- info                                                                             a user specified string that is returned to                                    all the application instances remaining in                                     the shared set on the events generated                                         by this unshare.                                                 ______________________________________                                    

This function is used to remove an application instance from a set of sharing applications, it does not terminate the application. All other applications in the set will receive an event to indicate that the instance is no longer part of the sharing set.

The user₋₋ info parameter should be used to tell the other instances in the application set why the unshare is being done.

Any ports owned by the instance will be dropped and events raised at the other end(s) of the logical channel(s).

The event handler set-up by the register₋₋ app is still active and will receive events directed via the system or the call manager.

Typical flows for the control of sharing are illustrated in FIG. 14. For a share in which only the name and not the handle of the target application is specified then the SHARE₋₋ REQUEST event is raised initially in the call manager at the target node. For a share request in which the handle of the target application is specified the SHARE₋₋ REQUEST event is raised directly in the target application.

    ______________________________________                                         At Step 1                                                                             Application X issues an asynchronous request to                                initiate                                                                       sharing with application Y. Since the request                                  specified only Y's character string address the                                SHARE.sub.-- REQUEST is raised to the call manager at Y's                      node, node 2.                                                           At Step 2                                                                             Y's call manager has a number of options. It may                               reject the share request (RC.sub.-- SHARE.sub.-- REJECTED), it                 may                                                                            satisfy the share request itself (RC.sub.-- SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED)            ,                                                                              or it may decide to pass on the share request to a new                         instance of application Y, (RC.sub.-- SHARE.sub.-- NO.sub.--                   CONFIRM).                                                               At Step 3                                                                             If the call manager returns either RC.sub.-- SHARE.sub.-- REJECTED             1                                                                              or RC.sub.-- SHARE-CONFIRMED then the subsystem will                           raise either a SHARE.sub.-- REJECTED event, or a                               SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED event at the requester.                          At Step 4                                                                             If the call manager issues a launch function call                              specifying Y as the target application then a new                              instance of Y is started. The subsystem allocates an                           application handle for Y and returns it to the call                            manager. It is assumed that after being started Y will                         want to become aware hence it will issue an                                    register.sub.-- app function call identifying itself to the                    subsystem. The subsystem returns to Y the handle it                            allocated at launch.                                                    At Step 5                                                                             As a result of the register.sub.-- app the subsystem raises an                 APP.sub.-- REGISTERED event to node 2's call manager.                   At Step 6                                                                             Node 2's call manager will then issue a share request                          on                                                                             behalf of X specifying Y's handle and return with a                            RC.sub.-- OK.                                                           At Step 7                                                                             application Y will then receive a SHARE.sub.-- REQUEST event                   identifying X as the requester. Y may then either                              reject (RC.sub.-- SHARE.sub.-- REJECTED) or accept                             (RC.sub.-- SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED) the share.                           At Step 8                                                                             X will receive the appropriate SHARE.sub.-- REJECTED or                        SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED event.                                           At Step 9                                                                             if the share is accepted and X is also sharing with                            other application instances then the subsystem at node                         1 will send a SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED event naming X as the                     source and Y as the target and also Y as the new sharer                        to all these applications. In turn, the subsystem at                           the nodes where these applications are running will                            send SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED events to Y naming X as the                        source, Y as the target and themselves as the new                              sharer.                                                                 Finally at                                                                            X may later issue an unshare() to leave the sharing                     Step 10                                                                               set.                                                                           All remaining applications in the set will also receive                        an UNSHARE event.                                                       ______________________________________                                    

The Call Manager plays a key role in determining the behaviour or personality of the subsystem at a workstation. The Call Manager utility 101 (FIG. 13) supplied with the subsystem will now be described in detail.

The supplied call manager utility allows a clear separation of call management and application programming. Use of the shipped call manager therefore removes the need for aware applications to be involved in call set-up or tear-down. It provides dialogues for an end user to select names from the address book and logically establish a multi-point call. Parties can be added and can leave dynamically and several calls may be in progress simultaneously. Options provided include auto-answer and call barring.

In order to separate the look and feel of the call manager from the function, the call manager is actually implemented as two separate programs--the engine and the user interface. The engine provides call management function, whilst the user interface determines the look and feel. The call manager engine has a command interface to all it to be controlled by other applications (in fact this is how the user interface portion control the engine). The engine maintains an application table, for each local application instance currently running, a call table, for each call, a command table for each application currently in the command sharing set (and therefore eligible to send commands to the engine), and a link table, listing each passive link currently in effect.

The Supplied Call Manager Utility

The Call Manager lets the user initiate the following actions:

    ______________________________________                                         ∘                                                                       start a new call (note that a node may be engaged in several calls             at the same time, each with their own set of shared applications               and other parties)                                                        ∘                                                                       add an existing unshared application to a call                            ∘                                                                       unshare an existing application from a call                               ∘                                                                       extend a call by adding a new person to it (if the addressee                   accepts, any current applications within the call will be shared               with them)                                                                ∘                                                                       leave a call (in which case any shared applications will continue              to run but will no longer be part of a sharing set)                       ∘                                                                       shutdown the system (all current calls will be terminated and all              applications will become essentially unaware as part of the                    shutdown process)                                                         ∘                                                                       launch an application                                                     0    cancel an outgoing request if the addressee is not                        ______________________________________                                              responding                                                           

The user can also set various options, for example to indicate if incoming calls are to be automatically accepted or rejected and how requests for passive working are to be handled.

As shown in FIG. 15 the Call Manager user interface consists of a main window, complete with action bar and client area, the latter containing an information area, which displays messages and other status information, as well as context-sensitive prompts for the pulldown menus.

The action bar provides the following options:

    ______________________________________                                         ∘                                                                      Call                                                                       ∘                                                                          New        start a new call                                            ∘                                                                          Add        add person to call                                          ∘                                                                          Hang Up    end the current call                                        ∘                                                                          Cancel     cancel and Add or New                                       ∘                                                                          Shutdown   end the Call Manager (and all calls)                        ∘                                                                      Share                                                                      ∘                                                                          Share      add an existing unshared application                                           to the current call                                         ∘                                                                          Unshare    unshare an existing application from                                           the current call                                            ∘                                                                          Launch     launch a new application                                    ∘                                                                      Options                                                                    ∘                                                                          Auto       answer automatically accepted                               ∘                                                                          Passive    whether this machine may be used as a                                          gateway by others                                           ∘                                                                          Sound      if ticked, then a "ring" accompanies                                           incoming calls                                              ∘                                                                      Window                                                                     ∘                                                                          Log        displays or hides log view                                  ∘                                                                          Windowlist list of all child views and log view                        ∘                                                                          Cascade    cascades the child views                                    ∘                                                                          Tile       tiles the child views                                       ∘                                                                          Arrange icons                                                                             arranges icons of child views                               ______________________________________                                    

Other windows that can be displayed are the Unshared view, of aware applications currently running which are not shared in a call, a Call view, a list of the nodes in a call, and for each node, a list of the shared applications which are running there, and Log view, which is a separate window, not a child window of the control window, which contains a record of time-stamped events.

The Call Manager includes event handlers to handle call manager events, such as local application initialisation and named share requests from other nodes.

Calls and Sharing Sets

The concept of a call, as implemented by the Call Manager, has no real counterpart in the subsystem. In essence, a call consists of one or more named sharing sets, sets of application instances which know about each other. Each set consists of a single application that is running at each node within the call. The call manager itself is in one such sharing set for each call. Only the Call Manager (and hopefully the user|) is aware of how the various sharing sets at a given node are grouped into calls.

Since a call consists of one or more sharing set, the various call manager functions are in fact operations on sharing sets. Thus to start a new call to a remote node, the call manager creates a call name, typically by appending a numeric suffix to the node name, incrementing the number after each call. It then attempts to share, using this name, with the call manager at the remote node. If the share is accepted, the call has been established. To add a new node to an existing call, the call manager merely tries to share with the call manager at the new node, using the call name as the sharing set name. To join an existing call from outside, the call manager merely tries to share with the call manager at one of the nodes in the call, passing the name of the call to be joined. To leave a call, the Call manager unshares from the appropriate set. To add a new application into a call, the call manager issues shares on behalf of the application to each node in the call in turn, using the call name as the sharing set name. Note that once there are applications in the call then each time a new node is added a share will be issued to it for each application.

There are six main states for the call manager, as shown in FIG. 17. These are starting, ready, connected, processing, ending, and resigning. Starting occurs from the point at which the engine is launched until it has completed its initialisation. The engine then enters the ready state, waiting for commands from the user interface of some other application which has shared with the engine. Some of the events passed to the engine's event handler from the support system result in signals being sent to the user interface component so that this in turn can inform the user and if necessary obtain a response which can be fed back via a command to the engine. The engine enters the connected state as soon as a call is in progress. it returns to the ready state as soon as no calls are in progress. While in this state it will accept the same set of commands as the ready state, with one exception, the shutdown command. The engine enters the processing state whenever it is waiting for the user interface to respond or for a support system event to occur. While in this state certain commands, such as call, are rejected with the "engine is busy" indication. Certain support system events, such as SHARE₋₋ REQUEST are also rejected.

The engine enters the ending state as soon as the NODE₋₋ SHUT₋₋ DOWN₋₋ REQUEST event has been received and accepted. Note that the engine must be in the ready state for a shutdown to proceed, if any calls are in progress, these must be terminated first. The engine enters the resigning state as soon as it has accepted a CALL₋₋ MANAGER₋₋ REQUEST. The state is similar to ending in that the engine will terminate, but the rest of the support system will not. The engine will only resign if it is in the ready state, if any calls are in progress these must be terminated first.

FIG. 16 shows 4 nodes, A, B, C and D. Node C is involved in two calls:

1. a call involving two application sharing sets, Y and Z and node D

2. a call involving a single application sharing set, X and nodes A and B

Call Manager Event Handling

The key events which the Call Manager handles are:

    ______________________________________                                         ∘                                                                      APP.sub.-- REGISTERED                                                                            this is raised when a (local)                                                  application issues the register.sub.-- app                                     call                                                     ∘                                                                      MONITOR.sub.-- EVENTS                                                                            in order to see both the local and                                             remote effects of an unshare, the                                              call manager must monitor these                                                events.                                                  ∘                                                                      PASSIVE.sub.-- LINK.sub.-- REQUEST                                                               this is raised when the system                                                 wants to use resources at this node                                            to support the needs of other nodes                      ∘                                                                      PASSIVE.sub.-- LINK.sub.-- RELEASE                                                               this is raised when resources at this                                          node are no longer needed by the                                               system to support the needs of                                                 other nodes                                              ∘                                                                      SET.sub.-- CALL.sub.-- MANAGER                                                                   this is raised when another                                                    application issues a                                                           set.sub.-- call.sub.-- manager call                      ∘                                                                      SHARE.sub.-- REQUEST                                                                             this is raised when a request is                                               received from another node to                                                  share with a named application                           ∘                                                                      SHARE.sub.-- REJECTED                                                                            this is raised when a local                                                    application refuses a share request                                            (normally the result of some sort of                                           error)                                                   ∘                                                                      SHUT.sub.-- DOWN.sub.-- REQUEST                                                                  this is raised when a request has                                              been made, either by the user or by                                            an application, for the system at                                              this node to be shut down.                               ∘                                                                      SIGNAL            this is raised when an application                                             issues a signal whose target is                                                either null or a name rather than a                                            handle                                                   ∘                                                                      APP.sub.-- DEREGISTERED                                                                          this is raised when an aware                                                   application terminates                                   ______________________________________                                    

These events are handled as defined below

Register₋₋ app

The Call Manager makes a note of the name of the application which is starting, adding it to the list of applications in the sharing set for the appropriate call, or the unshared list, depending on which is active. If a call is active and the application was started by the user, the Call Manager will issue a named share call to each remote node in the call so that the application gets shared across the call. If the application was launched by the Call manager as a result of an incoming share request, the Call Manager completes the share by issuing a local share on behalf of the remote node/application.

When applications terminate, their names are removed from the appropriate list (see APP₋₋ DEREGISTERED below).

The Call Manager always returns RC₋₋ OK for APP₋₋ REGISTERED events.

PASSIVE₋₋ LINK₋₋ REQUEST

This event is handled in a straightforward manner. The Call Manager checks the state of the Passive Working option. If it is permit, the request is accepted, while if it is deny the request is refused. If it is ask, the Call Manager puts up a dialogue box asking the user if the request is to be accepted (the panel displays as much information about the request as possible) and then accepts or rejects the request depending on the users response (by returning RC₋₋ OK or Re₋₋ PAIL).

MONITOR₋₋ EVENTS

The two events that the Call Manager is interested in are the results of an unshare call (raised locally) and an unshare event (raised remotely). The Call Manager reacts to them by removing the application from the appropriate list.

If the unshare comes from a remote call manager, this is indicating they have left the call, so the Call Manager responds by dropping them from the appropriate call list. In the case where there were only two parties in the call (i.e. the call has effectively ended), the Call Manager unshares and moves any applications still listed as within the call to the unshared list and then removes the call.

The Call manager returns RC₋₋ OK for all events.

PASSIVE₋₋ LINK₋₋ RELEASE

This event is generated when the channels using the passive link are destroyed. When it occurs, the Call Manager merely updates the main window to indicate that the passive link is no longer present and returns RC₋₋ OK.

SET₋₋ CALL₋₋ MANAGER

The Call Manager responds to this event by returning RC₋₋ OK, which allows the transfer of the Call Manager role to the new application.

SHARE₋₋ REQUEST

The Call Manager looks at the name to be resolved. If this is the call manager name, then this is really a request from a remote call manager to start a new call. The user info will contain the ID of the call (i.e. the ID assigned by the remote node). This is needed to resolve ambiguity in cases where the two nodes are involved in more than one call with each other.

In this case, the Call Manager responds checking the state of the Answer option. If it is manual, the Call Manager puts up a dialogue box asking the user if the request is to be accepted (the panel displays as much information about the request as possible). If it is auto-answer, the request is accepted. If the request is not from a call manager, it must come from a node which is already a party to an existing call. Because of this, such incoming share requests are always accepted. Note that the incoming share request contains a call ID. This is because a given pair of nodes my have more than one call in common and allows the resulting ambiguity to be resolved. To accept the share request, the Call Manager attempts to launch the corresponding application. It looks in the LAKES.INI file for an entry in the APPLICATIONS section whose KEYWORD matches the target application used in the share request. If none is found, an error is reported. If an entry is found, the value in the profile entry is used to fill in the fields of a launch call, which is then executed. The APPLICATIONS section might look like this:

applications!

chat=c:\lakes\apps\chat.exe, c:\lakes\work . . .

chalkboard=c:\lakes\apps\chalk.exe, c:\lakes\work, . . .

filetransfer=c:\lakes\apps\xfer.exe, c:\lakes\work, . . .

The Call Manager makes a note of the handle of the launched program, so that when the corresponding Register₋₋ app event occurs it doesn't try to share it again (see the APP₋₋ REGISTERED event above). If the launch fails, then RC₋₋ SHARE₋₋ REJECTED is returned. One the other hand if the launch is successful, the Call Manager returns RC₋₋ SHARE₋₋ NO₋₋ CONFIRM. When the launched application later issues register₋₋ app, the Call Manager will issue a share call and the application should then return RC₋₋ SHARE₋₋ CONFIRMED.

Note that the Call Manager described here never resolves an incoming share request by sharing with an application that is already running--a new instance is always launched.

SHARE₋₋ REJECTED

As noted above, an application launched by the Call Manager will, once it has registered, be the target of a share issued by the Call Manager. Normally, it should respond with RC₋₋ SHARE₋₋ CONFIRMED since the Call Manager has already accepted the call. In the case where an application cannot accept a share (for example, due to lack of resources), the rejection will be sent to both the Call Manager and the original remote application. The Call Manager responds by "forgetting" the original share and returning RC₋₋ OK.

The Call Manager responds to this event by returning RC₋₋ OK, which allows the shutdown to continue. This will in turn cause all applications (including the Call Manager) to receive a SHUT₋₋ DOWN event, when the system is actually shutting down. Like the other supplied applications, the Call Manager reacts to this event by de-registering.

SIGNAL

Two types of signal will cause a SIGNAL event to be raised in the Call Manager:

1. a signal whose target₋₋ application parameter is null. Such events are treated as Call Manager commands

2. a signal whose target₋₋ application parameter mentions an application by name rather than by handle. The Call Manager resolves the name by

    ______________________________________                                         ∘                                                                         checking if an application of that name is currently running                   (i.e. an register.sub.-- app has been issued which uses that                   name)                                                                   ∘                                                                         if so, the signal is transferred to that application (if there                 are several, the signal goes to the first instance)                     ∘                                                                         if there are none, the Call Manager does not launch a new                      instance. Instead the signal is ignored.                                ______________________________________                                    

APP₋₋ DEREGISTERED

This event is generated when an application terminates. The Call Manager responds to this event by removing the name of the de-registering application from the appropriate call list, updating the main window appropriately and returning RC₋₋ OK.

A Simple Example

One possible sequence of events is as follows:

1. user A calls user B (resulting in the sharing of call managers)

2. user A starts chat application (which will be shared by A's call manager and thus launched by the call manager at B, forming the first application sharing set)

3. users A and B chat for a while, then user B terminates the chat application (which ends the sharing set). Although the chat application continues to run at A, it appears on the unshared list as it no longer part of the call.

4. user B starts the chalkboard application. Since the two users are still in a call, the call manager at B will issue a share, and thus A's call manager will launch the chalkboard there, forming a new sharing set.

5. user A hangs up the call.

Looking at this sequence at the API level, we would see something like the following:

1. The Call manager at A starts the process by issuing a share with B. At B, the Call Manager will note that the share involves the call manager (and is therefore asking to set up a new call). Assuming the call is to be accepted, the call manager accepts the share between call managers.

2. When the user at A starts the chat application, the call manager at A (which sees the register₋₋ app event) will issue a share. At B, the call manager will accept the share request by issuing a launch for the corresponding application.

3. When user B terminates the chat application, there will be an automatic unshare issued by the subsystem at B. Since both call managers are monitoring unshare calls and events, they will both be notified of the unshare and can thus update their call lists. The call manager at B will see the unshare call and the call manager at A will see the unshare event.

4. The chalkboard application is processed in the same way as the chat application.

5. Finally, the user A hangs up, the call manager at A will issue an unshare, so ending the call.

Structure of a Well-Behaved Application

One of the main aims of the Call Manager design is to simplify the structure of an aware application. Since the Call Manager looks after making a call, issuing share and unshare calls and so on, a typical application need only:

    ______________________________________                                         ∘                                                                       register.sub.-- app at start up. If the return code indicates no               call                                                                           manager is present, the application should inform the user                     and then terminate.                                                       ∘                                                                       after registering successfully, use create.sub.-- ports to establish           a                                                                              channel to itself (for most applications a merged channel set will             be used)                                                                  ∘                                                                       allow most events to be handled in the default way                        ∘                                                                       when asked to terminate, first remove.sub.-- ports, then optionally            unshare and then deregister.sub.-- app                                    ______________________________________                                    

It is not normally necessary for an application to issue either share or unshare since the Call Manager will handle these.

As far as events are concerned, most can be handled in a default way. For example:

    ______________________________________                                         ∘                                                                      SHARE.sub.-- REQUEST should result in SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED being             returned, since this event is the result of a local share from                 the Call Manager which has already decided to accept the call.                 There is no need to do any other processing.                               ∘                                                                      SHARE.sub.-- CONFIRMED should result in RC.sub.-- OK but can                   otherwise be ignored.                                                      ∘                                                                      SHARE.sub.-- REJECTED should not occur (since all                              SHARE.sub.-- REQUESTs should be accepted).                                 ∘                                                                      SHUT.sub.-- DOWN should result in RC.sub.-- OK and the application             should then either terminate (in an OS/2 PM environment by posting             a WM.sub.-- QUIT message to itself for example) or at least no                 longer issue API calls.                                                    ∘                                                                      UNSHARE should result in RC.sub.-- OK but can otherwise be                 ______________________________________                                             ignored.                                                               

We claim:
 1. A method for establishing a communication route over a heterogeneous network between a source node and a destination node said route comprising at least one intermediate node, each of said nodes having a support system including a network control subsystem for controlling physical routing of data between nodes and a respective record of available communication resources to adjacent nodes in said route, said method comprising the steps ofreceiving, at said support system of said source node, a request, from a first application executing at said source node, to establish a communication channel having specified characteristics between said first application and a second application at said destination node, transmitting said request from said source node to said at least one intermediate node; for each intermediate node,receiving at said intermediate node said request from the preceding node, determining, at said intermediate node from said respective record of available communication resources, whether or not the request is supported using the available communication resources between said intermediate node and an adjacent node in said route, and if said request is supported by said intermediate node, transmitting said request from said intermediate node to the next node in said route; receiving at said destination node said request from said at least one intermediate node, determining, at said destination node, whether or not to accept the request, and if so, transmitting an indication thereof to said source node; and establishing said route between said first and second applications in response to said indication.
 2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said specified characteristics comprise an indication of a bandwidth for the route.
 3. A method as claimed in either of claims 1 or 2, wherein said specified characteristics comprises an indication of an error rate for the route.
 4. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said specified characteristics further comprise at least one the following: throughput, jitter, latency, data size, data encryption techniques employed, compression methods employed or data re-transmission rate.
 5. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the step of modifying said request before said intermediate node transmits said request to said destination node.
 6. A method as claimed in claim 5, wherein said step of modifying is responsive to a measure of the cummulative quality of service.
 7. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the step ofdetermining at said destination node from said respective record of available communication resources whether or not the route is supported using the available destination node communication resources between destination node and an adjacent intermediate node.
 8. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising, at each node, the step ofif said request is not supported using the available intermediate node communication resources, determining whether or not a further application executing at said node will relinquish the node communication resources allocated thereto, and using any relinquished node communication resources to support said request.
 9. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising, in response to said indication, the steps ofallocating a quantity of the available destination node comminations resources between destination node and said intermediate node to support said request, and updating the available destination nose communication resources accordingly; for each intermediate node allocating a quantity of the available node comminations resources between said intermediate node and said preceding and next nodes to support said request, and updating the available destination node communication resources accordingly; and allocating a quantity of the available source node comminations resources between said source node and said at least one intermediate node to support said request, and updating the available source node communication resources accordingly.
 10. A system for establishing a communication channel over a heterogeneous network between a source node and a destination node via a route comprising at least one intermediate node, each of said nodes having a support system including a network control subsystem for controlling physical routing of data between nodes and a respective record of available communication resources to adjacent nodes in said route, said system comprisingmeans for receiving, at said support system of said source node, a request, from a first application executing at said source node, to establish a communication channel having specified characteristics between said first application and a second application at said destination node, means for transmitting said request from said source node to said at least one intermediate node; for each intermediate node,means for receiving at said intermediate node said request from the preceding node, means for determining, at said intermediate node from said respective record of available communication resources, whether or not the request is supported using the available communication resources between said intermediate node and an adjacent node in said route, and if said request is supported by said intermediate node, transmitting said request from said intermediate node to the next node in said route; means for receiving at said destination node said request from said at least one intermediate node, means for determining, at said destination node, whether or not to accept the request, and if so, transmitting an indication thereof to said source node; and means for establishing said communication channel between said first and second applications in response to said indication. 